Reviews tagging 'Incest'

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid

64 reviews

ofbooksandechos's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring sad slow-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, Incest, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Body horror, Antisemitism, Vomit, Xenophobia, Gore, and Eating disorder

Minor: Cannibalism

CWs provided by the author: Gore and body horror Child sexual abuse; incest Cannibalism Antisemitism, xenophobia, and scientific racism Physical and psychological abuse by family members; gaslighting Self-harm and suicidal ideation Bulimia; graphic descriptions of vomiting Animal death

starrysteph's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

3.5

Juniper & Thorn explores how trauma shapes us, how we desperately look for meaning & purpose in dark circumstances, and how you live with your past.

Specific content warnings at the end of this review: but this book is about trauma. 

We follow Marlinchen, a fairytale-obsessed plain-faced third daughter. Her mother is gone and her wizard father is cursed to never feel satisfaction; he is controlling and cruel to his girls. Marlinchen and her sisters are witches; they treat clients with their various skills (though their father spends the rubles and is xenophobic - so VERY particular about the clientiele) and they are not permitted to leave their home.

One night, the three girls sneak out to see a ballet show: and Marlinchen falls head over heels for the lead dancer, Sevas. She now must balance her first secret with her deep desire and the trauma of her past. And to add to the stakes - there’s a monster on the loose, terrorizing the city.

There’s brilliance here - Reid skillfully integrates fairytale tropes with darkness and horror. There’s also deep vulnerability - Marlinchen is living with trauma and has shrunken into herself; there’s a major theme of dehumanization.

The pacing ebbed and flowed; there were moments I couldn’t put the book down but also scenes that were far too slow for my taste. I think a large issue here was some overdone repetition - like I get it, the rule of threes is important, the sisters are beautiful and Marlinchen is plain, Marlinchen is blushing 99% of the time. Some of it boiled down to intrusive thoughts and folkloric obsessiveness tied into Marlinchen’s trauma; that made sense to me. But others felt like Reid was shouting at the reader. Remember this?? Don’t forget this foreshadowing!! Let me hold your hand, reader!! It felt like an editing issue, alongside some slightly-cringey & overdone analogies. 

I felt like we got to know Marlinchen quite well; the supporting characters were not always so fleshed out. Her sisters, for example, felt quite limited. And for a book that takes place largely in one location, the world-building was a bit vague & confusing. I’ve read The Wolf & the Woodsman and felt that gave me a significant leg-up in understanding some of the hierarchies. 

Finally, I didn’t particularly enjoy the romance. For me, it felt very insta-lovey and lacked the depth and lyricality and complexity that Reid gave to the rest of the storyline. I wasn’t ever truly rooting for them as a pair.

I felt like Reid is continuing to strengthen their voice and explore the themes she most wants to write about. This writing feels vulnerable and powerful. There’s a lot I admired about this storytelling. I’m looking forward to reading whatever she puts out next.

CW: blood, body horror, death, murder, emotional abuse, child abuse, sexual abuse (child), cannibalism, antisemitism, xenophobia, gaslighting, racism, eating disorder, vomiting, self harm, suicidal thoughts, animal death, animal cruelty, incest, explicit sexual content

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Incest, Rape, Violence, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Murder, Racism, Self harm, Animal death, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Death, and Injury/Injury detail

fictitious_mosh's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Blood, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Cannibalism, Vomit, and Gore

Moderate: Incest, Animal death, and Sexual violence

savvy999's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.25

With grotesque, lush imagery and a twist that sends stones to the bottom of your stomach, Juniper and Thorn manages to grip the reader tightly and pull them into the depths, compiling a cornucopia of trauma but with a powerfully executed and emotional ending. Not for the faint of heart. Please read the content warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Death of parent, Gore, Child abuse, Xenophobia, Vomit, Eating disorder, Antisemitism, Body shaming, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Pedophilia

maren_hemsath's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Death of parent, Incest, Vomit, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Antisemitism

theeloreads's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.5

First, I’ll start by saying that I struggle to explain why I like books; it’s easier to point to things I didn’t like. As it is, I’ve struggled to gather my thoughts on why I enjoyed this book so much. It might be the vivid and atmospheric writing or the stories woven in throughout that tie into the themes of the main plot. Either way, Juniper & Thorn is a beautiful yet gruesome story that I will keep returning to.

Juniper & Thorn is the gothic retelling of my dreams. The prose is lovely, and before the story even begins, it’s what draws you in.

It’s dark and atmospheric but hard to read at times.

Marlinchen is an isolated girl, confined to her house with only her father and two sisters. Marlinchen receives abuse from everyone, which has messed with how she acts and thinks of herself.

Juniper & Thorn follows Marlinchen and Sevas as they try to escape from abuse and manipulation.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Self harm, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Antisemitism, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Body horror, Eating disorder, Animal death, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Cannibalism, and Vomit

shutupaboutbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I took me a couple days to put into words my feelings about this book. I loved The Wolf and the Woodsman a lot but Juniper and Thorn is a masterpiece. The storytelling is beautiful and really takes you to another world. I wish I could read this book again for the first time. I highly recommend it if you can stomach it but please please please check the content warnings before you read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Xenophobia, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Murder, Gore, Incest, and Medical trauma

Minor: Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, and Cannibalism

rvmajuliette's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Vomit

Moderate: Incest

carigillette's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Vomit, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Rape, Murder, Incest, and Gore

cakt1991's review against another edition

dark emotional fast-paced

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

5.0

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own. 
Having loved Ava Reid’s debut last year, I was fully ready to commit to anything she would write next. And the fact that Juniper & Thorn was marketed as Gothic horror didn’t scare me off one bit. And the promise of a retelling of The Juniper Tree, one of the lesser-known, super-fucked up Grimm Brothers stories that debunks the whole “fairy tales are for children” thing all on its own? Yes, please! And upon reading, I also found some allusions to Donkeyskin, another super-fucked up tale, the most popular version being by Perrault. That said, this book isn’t playing around. I strongly suggest readers take care of their own mental health and consult the content warnings…while also repeating Ava Reid’s statement in her promotional GR post that they should not use these warnings to cast judgment and stigmatize those who’ve dealt with these traumas and how they reckon with them, Reid included. 
With that out of the way…this book really lived up to my expectations. It’s set in the same world as The Wolf & The Woodsman, so while they’re atmospherically and tonally different, there’s a common thread in the Russian-inspired culture depicted. The two can stand on their own, but it‘s cool to have read both and get the little cultural references. 
As for that atmosphere and tone…wow, it’s amazing. While it really hits you hard, it’s simultaneously impossible to put down. Reid has an addictive quality to her writing, and even when describing the most gruesome, heinous things, I found it hard to look away. 
Marlinchen is a deeply compelling heroine, and it’s hard not to root for her as she navigates her situation with her horribly abusive father. Her trauma is poignantly drawn, as is her lingering sense of defiance as she endures and works to undermine him.
The romance she forms with Sevas provides a wonderful sweetness to contrast the intense depravity, one I welcomed dearly. He’s such a kind and compassionate love interest, allowing Marlinchen not just an escape, but a path to healing. 
This book is absolutely stunning, and while I acknowledge it may not be for everyone, for reasons previously stated, I enthusiastically recommend it to anyone looking for a dark fantasy or Gothic horror novel with fairy tale aesthetics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Incest, Gore, Body horror, Cannibalism, Antisemitism, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Racism, Gaslighting, and Eating disorder