Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth

68 reviews

kiwichill's review against another edition

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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Character flaws caused by a chaotic upbringing in the foster care system.   The scenarios in this book may seem to be far-fetched but unfortunately they are not.  The whole system needs an overhaul because there are far too many kids with psychological damage from the foster care system 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Death, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Bullying, Pregnancy, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Murder, Death of parent, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Cursing, Alcohol, and Body shaming

meghan_w's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Wow. This one was a hard read. I typically DNF books with references to child abuse or death, but I felt connected to this one in a different way. Hepworth does a very good job approaching the topic delicately and also straightforward without graphic detail which I really appreciated. I wasn’t totally sure how I felt after finishing. The book was addicting, well written, satisfying plot, but saying I enjoyed a book with these themes is hard for me. What got me in the end was actually the acknowledgments after the book finishes. Hepworth talks about her research speaking to foster children, parents, etc. She speaks of the importance of remembering that for all the evil in the world, there is also good. She speaks to the importance of chosen family, which I speak about often as well. It’s because of this, that I am choosing to rate this 5 stars even with the darker themes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Rape, Sexual assault, Addiction, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Confinement, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Drug use, Torture, and Child death

smallsreadsbooks's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

3.0

What the fuck

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Child death

Moderate: Sexual harassment and Sexual assault

amanda_reads89's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Confinement

Minor: Rape, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault

lgiery's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-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

3.75

An enjoyable audiobook with a dark, twisted ending. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Rape, Physical abuse, Torture, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, and Sexual assault

princessblueyes's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Bullying, Mental illness, Death, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Violence, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Grief, Drug abuse, Child death, Addiction, and Alcohol

maddyhammer's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse

Moderate: Addiction

Minor: Sexual assault

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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

3.5

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with a gifted copy of this audiobook to review. 

 

The story follows the lives of three sisters, flashing through time as they reflect on their experiences in foster care and how it has impacted their lives today.  

 

If you’re thinking this will follow the structure of a thriller or classic murder mystery, put those expectations aside. This book really focuses on the inner psyches of the characters and describing the abuse they faced in their childhood. Overall, this was a tough read and it ended up taking me over a month to actually finish. I think the book was still worth reading though, and I appreciated the resolution. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Addiction, Violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Child death, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Child abuse, Rape, Death of parent, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse

0ldoini's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Abandonment, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Bullying, Incest, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Body shaming, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Drug use, Murder, Suicide, Addiction, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Torture, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Rape, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Pedophilia

blueeyedshook's review

dark

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child death, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Bullying, Drug use, and Abandonment

Minor: Sexual content

LGBTQ character/romance