Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper

82 reviews

inkdrinkeranonymous's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.75

I absolutely loved The Wolf Den! Here are some pros and cons:

PROS: 

-I was enthralled and had to know what happened next! This book really kept me hooked. Amara was in such a precarious situation. 

-It was easy to get attached to the characters. 

-The turmoil of Pompeii and the hard decisions that needed to be made were well shown.

-The setting and ambience were lovey! I really felt like I was in the story. The quotes and graffiti in the beginning or within the chapters really add something special. 

-I loved the friendship between the she-wolves

CONS

- Handled some very heavy topics with little care. Or the topics were brushed quickly under the rug. 

-The pacing was odd and confusing at times. 

-Some characters made choices that didn’t make sense to them. It felt like the choices were made just to move the plot along with no regard to whether it made sense. 

This is the end of the list of pros and cons that are spoiler free! Overall, I really liked this book enough to overlook the flaws.  

!!!If you look any further there will be spoilers!!!

Amara was a truly bad person with some of the choices she made. There was a horrible double standard. Only Amara was allowed to make bad choices and if any other character did, they were portrayed as utterly evil!

After Victoria literally murders a man and is rightfully upset, Amara acts horribly. She literally killed someone. Have some sympathy!! Or at least common decency. Are we supposed to feel bad for Amara? I certainly don’t when she acts so horrible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicide, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, and Slavery

Moderate: Sexual violence, Trafficking, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

debussy's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Slavery, Sexism, Murder, Death, Violence, Suicide, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Misogyny, and Alcohol

Minor: Kidnapping, Abortion, and Vomit

tayrayhay's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.75

4.9

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse and Rape

feathers4bookmarks's review against another edition

challenging funny hopeful fast-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? No

5.0

Loved the characters and the authors style. She did loads of research into a real brothel of Pompeii and tied her findings into the scenes, writings on the wall, and characters. I liked that the book wasn’t too dark or depressing but still told the stories of these women and how the author believes they must have coped with their lives. These is humor, struggle, loss, and hope. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Confinement, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Suicide, Trafficking, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Vomit, Abortion, and Rape

caribeth's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Rape

motleybooksandtea's review

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Murder, and Rape

eggyleggy's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I quite enjoyed this story :)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Trafficking, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

timbookshelf's review against another edition

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Physical abuse

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Abortion

gilroi's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

An excellent work of historical fiction, showing the lives of the Roman underclass. I wish more books were written about people history would rather forget, especially since the lives of slaves and prostitutes were unusually well-documented in Roman history. All the characters are real and varied, and the author deftly avoids a lot of the worst tropes associated with this sort of story. My only complaint was feeling the ending was a little rushed, but the last chapter more than makes up for it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Classism, Trafficking, Domestic abuse, Suicide, and Slavery

Moderate: Drug use, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, and Rape

Minor: Abortion

amandasbookreview's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

5.0

 

Thank you, Elodie Harper, NetGalley, and Union Square & Co. for the opportunity to read this book!

“Either we choose to stay alive, or we give up. And if it’s living we choose, then we do whatever it takes.”

THE WOLF DEN

I spent the past three days reading The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper. I have wanted to read it sooner but work has kept me from diving in. I am so glad I finally found time to read this book. It took me back to Pompeii in 74 CE. Amara was once a physician’s daughter. But after his death, the debts were high and she was sold as a slave and now is forced to work as a prostitute at one of Pompeii’s most infamous brothels. Survival is their focus and Amara is determined to one day be free. She will use her wit and allure to free herself and support the women around her.

But first. Trigger Warnings: slavery, abuse, sexual assault, rape, child loss, miscarriage, suicide

This is NOT an easy book to read and it is not meant for everyone. Years ago, I went to the natural history museum that had a Pompeii exhibit on display. They displayed the casts of the victims who were killed in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. They also showed some fresco paintings from the Lupanar. So it was fascinating to read about this history that took place almost 2,000 years ago. The author does a fantastic job at bringing these fictional characters to life and making them feel real. The characters all come from different backgrounds and have been forced into horrors that many cannot even imagine. They all have different reactions to these horrors. Some give up, some fight, some push their emotions away… but all their feelings are valid, no matter how different. It shows that there are many ways to react to trauma.

I cannot wait to see what is in store for Amara in the next book. Her world is changing and will no doubt find a way to fight her way to a freedwoman with independence. She has already met some historical figures such as Pliny the Elder. Another interesting thing is that the fatal eruption is only 5 years away. So there is still so much historical content to be explored. In a time where women are considered to be chattel, it is inspiring to watch them come up with their own ways to survive and support each other. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Murder, Rape, Self harm, Kidnapping, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Grief