Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

67 reviews

faduma's review against another edition

So boring, pointless, nothing was interesting, people existing to exist. Overall disappointment 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Drug abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, and Violence

jakobmarleymommy's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Toxic friendship, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, Violence, Blood, Classism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Gore, Animal death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Slavery, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Suicide

addie's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Mental illness, Animal death, Murder, Blood, Death, Police brutality, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, and Death of parent

Minor: Suicide attempt

bi_n_large's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Blood, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Murder, Racism, Gore, Slavery, and Animal death

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, and Rape

Minor: Torture and Drug use

hanz's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The pace of this was a little off because I was missing a more prominent mystery element like the first book. The mystery didn't affect the main plot until about two thirds into the book. 

Reading these back to back was interesting because there are some clever hints to the previous book that made the mystery a little more interesting. 

The last third was the most interesting to me, so I will most likely read the sequel that seems likely based on the ending. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, Addiction, Blood, and Sexism

Minor: Vomit and Torture

plantgal_jill's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood

Minor: Torture, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Rape, and Police brutality

molly_storm's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I put off listening to Hell Bent for ages after getting it on Audible, because I figured I would really need to focus on it - the time skips in Ninth House had really baffled me at first but by the end everything made sense so I figured this one would be the same. 

I was definitely not disappointed in the plot! Three nights in a row, I stayed up past 4am listening to this audiobook after going to bed. It flows beautifully - I know a lot of people have said that it’s too fast or feels rushed but I disagree wholeheartedly. 

I’m excited for the story to continue in the 3rd one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Death, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Gore, and Blood

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Blood, Police brutality, Addiction, Death of parent, and Self harm

Minor: Vomit, Police brutality, Torture, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Cannibalism, Excrement, Drug abuse, Medical content, Drug use, Mental illness, Confinement, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual assault

By and large, the above triggers I feel are present are handled appropriately and are not there for gratuitous reasons.

gillianengelbrecht's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, and Animal death

Minor: Mental illness, Sexual content, Slavery, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Murder, and Suicide

suchsweetsorrow89's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

3.5 really, but I thought the book was fun so it gets bumped a star. overall, compared to her last, I think this one is slightly better in the sense that I felt there were fewer random/unnecessary moments than in the first book (especially in moments that deal with heavy gender-based cases of abuse and assault). however, one of the negatives is the pacing of the book. I often found that the descriptions were a bit heavy at times and I felt that there was not as much connection and genuine interactions with the characters as there was in the first book, so the chemistry, while not feeling forced, just fell flat. 

there are some specific things within this that I will spoil below, but all in all, I think this is a really fun read when you're looking to pass the time. in addition, I think the serious moments and reflections in this book are really stunning and you can tell how much leigh as evolved as a writer, philosopher, and world-builder.

- I would have liked to see more of dawes' backstory! while alex's story is special, it's also the story we have heard before. I thought one of the strongest aspects of ninth house was darlington's story, and I would have loved something similar for dawes, especially since she plays a more prominent role.

- on that note on darlington, I wish there were more of him. while I understand that's the 'point', I thought he fell way flatter than usual in his own thoughts and in his interactions with everyone after being rescued. it really did feel like he took more of a secondary/unnecessary role after his rescue, and it left me feeling uncomfortable in the wrong way (almost like it was defamation to all that his character was built up to be in the first book). I'm also not really buying that he would just surrender to alex, to his role, and to lethe as easily as he did.

- the twist was... just fine. maybe it's because I'm older, but I thought that this twist was a bit more expected than the first and just was not a page-turner in the way the other was.

- unfortunately, the ending did not make me really excited for the third book, since this new plotline just felt like a weird grab all while the one for the first book just made more sense? idk idk

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Torture, Child death, Blood, Gore, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Vomit, and Police brutality

Minor: Animal cruelty, Police brutality, Body shaming, Forced institutionalization, and Panic attacks/disorders

lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I read "Ninth House" last year and was captivated by the story, and absolutely dying to see the resolution to the cliffhanger ending
"Hell Bent" is the sequel to "Ninth House" and continues to follow Alex Stern in her journey to free Darlington from purgatory. Alex and Dawes are forbidden from attempting to save Darlington, so they assemble their own team to get the job done.
I did enjoy this story, and I did appreciate how much of an urban fantasy this felt to me, but I was a little bored at times. This book and the series as a whole has a lot of world building because of the magic system. With this being the second book, I wanted to get to the meat of the story faster. I felt at times that there were entire sections that could have been cut out of the book. Perhaps there re easter eggs that will feel more important for the next book, but right now, it felt unnecessary.
I do still really enjoy Alex as a character. She is rough around the edges and so relatable with her chaotic energy. I also really appreciate how committed she is to rescuing those that she loves. Darlington was so good for her, and she is hell bent on saving him.
The mystery that is going on was very okay. I was not super invested in all of the murders and trying to resolve what was happening, but I was not entirely bored by it either.
Will I keep reading this series? Probably. I am invested in Alex as a character, and I do love Leigh Bardugo's writing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, Torture, Stalking, and Murder