Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Leech by Hiron Ennes

64 reviews

jess2obsess's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Suicide, Medical content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Miscarriage

abbymawhinney's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-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? It's complicated

3.75

I really loved the uniqueness of this book and the world building that went into it. It set up some really interesting characters and themes but I'm not sure it quite stuck the landing with most of them. I finished the book feeling a little unsatisfied with how many of the plotlines had been left, not because it was ambiguous, but because a lot of things just felt forgotten about. 

If you're into gothic horror, or just horror in general and after something truly unique to get sucked into, then I do highly recommend the book. There's a lot of cool body horror and truly creepy scenes to enjoy along the way, even if the ending isn't perfect.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Rape

leswampwitch's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

I was thoroughly absorbed and totally loving the incredible world and fascinating characters that Hiron Ennes created. 

It was wonderfully atmospheric and overall a fabulous read.

However, I was disappointed with the last 100 pages or so. The story was metaphor rich, which ultimately fell flat at the end of the book when the metaphors and themes were laid out clearly for the reader, somewhat spoiling the metaphor, and in my experience, taking me out of the story all together.

I finished the book because I was almost finished with it anyway, but was very disappointed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Medical content, and Body horror

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

beeeenerys's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.5

Rich world building, queer cast of characters, people being outright terrible and weird. All stuff I love. 

I got really into the world and all the parallels used to discuss themes of autonomy, control and isolation. The language was a bit of a stumbling block for me but I adapted to it.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gore and Blood

Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, and Pregnancy

quirkydrinkerofink's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense 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

Graphic: Death, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual assault, and Body horror

Moderate: Alcohol, Child death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

bea_reads_books's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Medical content, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Child death, Cursing, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gore, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Animal cruelty, and Violence

Minor: Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Classism, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Torture, and Vomit

liltakeawaygirl's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Infertility, Violence, Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Animal death, Infidelity, Blood, Bullying, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and Misogyny

Minor: Colonisation, Grief, Confinement, Animal cruelty, Child death, and Vomit

nadiajohnsonbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Rape, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Child death, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Vomit, Suicide, Medical content, Pregnancy, Gore, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, and Mental illness

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

 

Context:

I added Leech by Hiron Ennes to my TBR after hearing Kayla from BooksandLala recommend it. I borrowed it from my library through the Libby app.

 

Review:

I approached Leech with some trepidation based on the reviews I’ve encountered. However, I am immensely impressed by the book’s originality—in fact, Leech is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read. I mean that as a compliment. Ennes crafts a world completely unlike anything I’ve ever read before with the precision of a surgeon. Everything feels deliberate and focused, from the French-inspired dialect spoken by some of the characters to the peculiarities of the setting. They use this specific setting and cast of characters to explore parasitism in many different forms, from the supernatural to the everyday.  I am also impressed with the book’s writing style, which is powerful and effective without being flowery. 

 

Despite my fascination with the world and my appreciation for Ennes’s writing, I did find myself somewhat reluctant to pick up the book at times. The book does not provide a strong “hook” for the reader to latch onto, either narratively or through its characters. Even well into the book, it is unclear which characters, if any, deserve our sympathy. Additionally, the narrative style of the book is inherently confusing due to the protagonist’s situation (I’m being intentionally vague here to avoid spoilers), and the murky positions of the side characters. If you’re looking for a book that prioritizes clarity and accessibility, you might want to look elsewhere.

 

There are a couple of other minor aspects of this book that didn’t quite work for me. The first is that it uses two characters that are twins in a very stereotypical and dehumanizing manner common to horror books that, in my opinion, did not add much to the story. The second is that the ending appears to abandon the character journey of the protagonist for another character; I would have liked a little bit more closure for the protagonist.

 

Leech will not be for everyone, but I loved its thematic explorations, writing style, and unique premise and worldbuilding. These elements were strong enough to overcome some problems I had with the narrative. 

 

The Run-Down: 

You might like Leech if . . . 

·      You are looking for a book with a very unique premise and world

·      You prefer deliberately crafted settings and characters to sweeping, epic fantasy/sci-fi tales

·      You are interested in a thematic exploration of parasitism

·      You like eerie, gory horror stories that do not deign to explain everything to the reader

 

You might not like Leech if . . . 

·      You are sensitive to the book’s triggers (please look at them before reading; they won’t spoil anything!)

·      You dislike experimental narrative premises

·      You like a story with a strong narrative driving force

·      You dislike complex plotlines that leave many questions unanswered

 

 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Miscarriage, Child abuse, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual assault, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy, Child death, Death, Medical trauma, and Gun violence

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Infertility, Animal death, and Vomit

Minor: Classism, Ableism, Racism, Suicide, and Sexism

bumblebeefarts's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Miscarriage, Infertility, Medical trauma, Murder, Violence, Pregnancy, and Medical content

Moderate: Rape, Child death, Death, Sexual assault, and Classism

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Chronic illness