Reviews with content warning for Gaslighting - The Water Cure

Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

The Water Cure by Sophie Mackintosh

8 reviews

sarahkheeter's review

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

3.75

I’m feeling really impacted by other people’s bad/unimpressed reviews. Initially I felt this book was unbearably slow, but it got better once the men show up (this is in the synopsis, so no spoilers). It definitely picks up and interested me much more after that point. The mystery around the characters and in the backdrop of the main plot is really interesting and dark. I’m not sure anything about this is inspiring, empowering, or even really insightful, but it’s certainly critical of patriarchal control and toxicity and shattering and has a lot of shock value. I think it had potential to be mind blowing and life alteringly good, but instead I would say it’s just dark, mysterious, and fascinating. Don’t read spoilers.

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ashtheaudiomancer's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

Unsure how to feel about this one. I certainly finished it quickly, and I found it gripping the whole way through. However, the story being told here is . . . distressing for reasons I don't think the author intended. Or maybe she did, and I'm just not getting it? I don't know. This is why I don't normally read literary novels. Well written, and I know the type of reader I'd recommend it to, but I am not that reader.

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jcue_reads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

1.5

This book has an interesting plot that, for me, was not executed well. The characters were very well written, however, the writing became abstract but not in a way that suited this story or the characters, except maybe Grace - at the end.

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nabila99's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

my first thought as i read this was: i don’t understand why the average rating for this book is so low!

the water cure is a gorgeously written and atmospheric exploration of abuse, trauma, family dynamics, loneliness, and survival as women. we follow the lives of three sisters, mainly the elder two, in their isolated, cult-like family that has convinced them that men are mortal threats to them, and that their abusive “therapies” are the only way to remain strong and unaffected. except one day, when a trio of men arrive on their island, testing their resolve.

this is not an easy book to read - the abuse detailed in it is graphic, and the pain, loneliness and stockholm syndrome of the sisters is very heavy. i’m not a big fan of the revelations or the ending, and i wouldn’t call this a “feminist dystopia”, but i was enthralled by this slow-paced, eerie, heartbreaking story.

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bookishpip's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This was a short but incredibly intense book. It’s been on my TBR for years and I was glad to finally get to read it.

It’s about three girls and their mother who live on an island. The world is dystopian; the seawater surrounding them is poisoned, and in this world the effect of men on women is one of physical decomposition. Sick women visit the island to receive treatment for the effects men have had on them. The only exception to the rule is the girls’ father, who they refer to as King, because he lives away from the mainland and on his supply visits protects himself from the poisoned air that causes men to thrive and hurt women. Until one day he goes missing and is presumed dead, after which the girls and their mother must learn to survive on their own…

At many points in reading, especially as the plot thickened later on, I couldn’t help but see parallels with Lord of the Flies (I loved LOTF so for me, this wasn’t a bad comparison to draw). It felt like an interesting feminist take on remote survival novels. I very much enjoyed it and was hooked. A word of warning though - parts of this book are incredibly intense and potentially triggering. Be aware of trigger warnings!

Highly recommended.

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