Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

111 reviews

heoleen's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Wat een lekker verhaal. Het is heerlijk geschreven (en vertaald), met een continue opbouw in spanning. Op het einde nog een cliffhanger waardoor ik meteen door wil lezen.
Enige minpuntje was dat de love triangle een beetje onnodig was.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Car accident, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Classism

bella_donna's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Death and Gun violence

Minor: Alcoholism, Car accident, and Alcohol

kennyscoffee's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No

3.25

In a “Knifes Out” type plot, this book offers a YA cast of character who are only slightly likable. The main character is smart and set herself up as “not like other girls” in every room she steps foot in. If you are looking for a complex mystery, this probably isn’t for you. While the twists and puzzle weren’t too predictable, I became exhausted by the main character’s choices and the gaggle of characters around her. The romance (and love triangle) is cheap and while the characters all have their own motives, they did grow with the story. 

Will I read the next book? Maybe but I might not finish it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Racism and Car accident

livvmarks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious tense 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

just_me_reading's review against another edition

mysterious fast-paced

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

4.25

I’m one of those people who can read a ton for like a week and then nothing for a year. This was my one for the week lol. I was in the mood for a good read and this was it for me. The writing was easily digestible and definitely a quicker read. The plot was more centrally focused on the mystery that is the Hawthorne brothers than the actual mystery, but I still enjoyed it. Whenever something was revealed, I was left with more questions and wanted to keep reading to find the answers. I immediately bought the second book after finishing!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

bookaddictellagershon's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Classism

tigger89's review against another edition

mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

I feel like I couldn't be impartial when reading this book, because between the setup(old rich guy plays games with his will) and the opening of the story involving chess, I couldn't help but compare it to The Westing Game. And that's not a fair comparison, because the Westing Game is a phenomenal mystery(albeit dated). It sets the bar so high that even something that's otherwise great can't help but fall short. I think that's what happened here.

I ultimately found the interpersonal mysteries far more compelling than the series of riddles set by Mr. Hawthorne. That's not to say that I necessarily appreciated all the characters(Nash and Xander were fun to read about, while Jameson and Grayson grated on me instantly), but I enjoyed seeing how they fit together and interacted with each other, past and present. In contrast, the riddles were merely alright. The answers were fairly obvious, and I found myself predicting the answers, in some cases long before the characters got around to it.

The thing I really didn't like — to the surprise of nobody who's read my reviews before — is that 1) there was a love triangle, and 2) neither option was great! I will say, though, that this might work itself out as the series goes on. Without giving away spoilers, this isn't the first love triangle these characters have been involved in, and it's possible the story might be setting up a situation in the future where they learn from past mistakes and don't do the thing. So I'm trying not to judge too hard just off the first book.

Though I worried that this book — being first in a series — might end on a cliffhanger, I'm happy to report that there was a satisfactory conclusion. Rather than a cliffhanger, we got a teaser of what the next volume's mystery would center around, which I appreciated. I have to admit that I did get the whodunit wrong at the end. I thought I had it all figured out, but nope! Oh well, this is why I don't read many mysteries.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

sandyrabanana's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol

tris256's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

storieswithbee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious reflective tense

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

4.0

I LOVED THIS BOOK!

I have no idea why it’s not a five star read for me, but I just don’t have that attachment that I normally feel to the book that I have given 5 stars to. I think that might be because it’s a YA read. Don’t get me wrong. This is a great book but it was an easy and enjoyable read. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism, Death, Blood, and Alcohol