Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Jawbone by Mónica Ojeda

24 reviews

hauntedantiqueshop's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

well, I hated that ending. I felt it inching closer and closer to that and still. Really hated it. I wish the story focused more on the weird ass girls and their friendship rather than the teacher. Mostly because they’re CURRENTLY being little freaks and the teacher is a recovering (soon to be relapsed) freak.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Mental illness, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Stalking, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Incest, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

idk how exactly to categorize it but uh. creepypastas? ft. a brief slenderman shout out

skaellner's review

dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse

Moderate: Torture and Kidnapping

rylee_the_captain_krane's review

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Blood, and Vomit

Moderate: Alcohol

elisascrive's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.5

Found myself gnashing at the end without even realising. It always keeps you on the edge. Not a five-star read just because I thought the ending would be much more devastating. Still, the rest of the book is a masterpiece of language and flow. 

It is not an easy read though, very explicit with toxic relationships all over. Motherhood and "sisterhood" are extremely relevant to the whole story and plot, with graphic depictions scattered throughout the novel.   

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Kidnapping, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, and Homophobia

Minor: Alcohol

seawarrior's review

dark tense

5.0

Endlessly disturbing and breathtakingly creative, Jawbone is a story of adolescent daring and purity that descends into violence. Ojeda's use of language, bodily disgust, and topical pop culture references create a story that is unique to the point of mythological. The horror draws the reader in and then clamps down its teeth, culminating in an ending soaked in madness and terror. One of the greatest horror stories I've ever read, and not recommended for the faint of heart.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Excrement, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, Death of parent, Outing, and Sexual harassment

gia0203's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.75

I need time to process this one. Dark reflection on womanhood and adolescence. The writing style was unique - perhaps not a style I prefer, but it was interesting, and  I appreciated it. Fascinating motifs and metaphors. Very Freudian. The relationship between the protagonists was the most interesting part. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, and Lesbophobia

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Pedophilia, Racism, and Alcohol

zenzi2read's review

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexual violence

andrewhatesham's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

Darkly feverdream-like, yet horrifyingly real. This one is for the feral girls. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Sexual assault, Stalking, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Blood, Vomit, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol

walrus420's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Child death and Alcohol

hi_im_tate's review

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.75

I loved the formatting of this book. The few reviews I skimmed over didn't mention it. There are chapters that are like regular chapter books, full of text, and then there are chapters that are formatted more like interviews. The chapters, also, jump between characters and past and present. If that isn't something you like, I suggest not reading this book. There were times were it was hard to read because it felt like the sentences just went on and on and on with several words that confused me and were hard to pronounce.

Now, onto the contents of this book. I can see why people call this book "gross". It does explore some intense kinks (biting, blood, guns) with minors, but I thought it was done in a good way when they were CONSENSUAL! Reading about minors doing some of these things did gross me out, but I also have to remember that this stuff in real life already. That was another this that made me enjoy this book. The things that happened in this book have happened and will happen in real life. It makes it much more harder to swallow. Looking at the relationships between the girls reminded me of my relationships with friends growing up (though, not as intense). Having a friendship with a group like this, where two are deemed the "leaders" and one an "outcast" really describes adolescent female friendships well in my experience. Growing up with one person all your life makes the two of you merge together in a way you wouldn't have thought possible before. 

The descent into psychosis felt real to me, even though I have never experienced it. The repetitive movements, the noticing small details, and the panic that is ever encompassing a person made ME feel like I was in her shoes. I could hold empathy for her because of what had happened to her and how she "learned" to deal with it.

The dealing of the religious trauma was probably my favorite part. Denying your sexuality, forming something you can actually believe in, questioning everything you've learned about the religion you were raised as. It definitely sheds light on how religion can fuck someone up.

The imagery from this book was wonderfully grotesque. It was a book I didn't want to put down; not necessarily because it was so good, but because I wanted the answers hidden in the pages. And I still don't feel satisfied with what I got 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Incest, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Lesbophobia, Outing, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Minor: Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship