Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

107 reviews

peeshpish's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

It was a slow start but once it picks up, it moves fast. The story flows well once the three POVs become more closely intertwined & the connections are more clear. There are many twists & turns along the way, & the story continues to develop until the very last sentence. Libby’s POV is an often needed relief from the heaviness of the other two, much less tense but still moves the story forward. Many characters felt flat or aligned with stereotypes that I’d expect more from a book written earlier than one written in 2019, but I still ended up reading most of the book in one sitting so I was definitely invested.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Murder, Grief, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Confinement, and Death

Moderate: Abandonment, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, and Misogyny

Minor: Suicide, Homophobia, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, Infertility, Medical trauma, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Blood, and Pedophilia

Lucy’s chapters are heavy with

sexual assault & domestic violence. She is raped & murders her attacker. If it helps to know, she is not punished for killing him.

The chapters set in the past (labelled “Chelsea, [year]”) contain a lot lf

child abuse, domestic violence, & are where most of the content warnings come into play.

Libby’s chapters are generally safe for content, mostly vague details about the fate & story of the people who lived in the house she inherits.

amyparsons's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-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

3.75

Was not suspenseful like a thriller, but I enjoyed the twists and turns. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Pedophilia, Drug use, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, and Physical abuse

Cult depictions

unablelemon's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse and Murder

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Rape

almond's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse

caoxtina's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Violence

sabbcm's review

adventurous dark mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Murder, Death of parent, Child abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Torture, Confinement, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Trafficking, Stalking, Rape, Sexual assault, and Pregnancy

our_bookish_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Not amazing, but not awful.
Told in multiple POV, altering timelines.

The story, as far as characters, got muddled and very confusing because there were so many in play during the  parts in the past. I did not see the thing with Michael coming! I liked how it happened and that it did. I feel bad for the kids in the past and present and the hardships growing up, no kid should have to endure any of it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Violence, Child abuse, Body shaming, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Death, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, Alcohol, Bullying, Gaslighting, Medical content, Miscarriage, Murder, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse

pops's review against another edition

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Confinement

Moderate: Abortion, Sexual assault, Death, Rape, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Animal death

brynhayes's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Pedophilia, Abandonment, Abortion, Blood, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Torture, Toxic relationship, Confinement, and Death

dsmith111's review against another edition

hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This book is fantastic. My only down would be the amount of characters and how it isn’t easy to know who’s writing a certain chapter.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Miscarriage, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Rape, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, and Incest

Minor: Animal death