Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Gallant by V.E. Schwab

26 reviews

a_alves00's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Confinement, Child death, Death, Abandonment, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Grief

diana_raquel's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

"Home is a choice."

Talk about impulse buying! I was browsing the shelves of a bookshop when I noticed this book! I have read other books by V.E. Schwab but didn't know what to expect from this book. But it was a pleasant surprise, mainly because I actually liked a story with horror elements. Usually, horror isn't something that I tend to gravitate toward, but I really liked this book. Maybe because the horror elements are mixed with other elements that I like, such as mystery elements and a darker tone.  The characters are well-developed and well-written. The story has good pacing and is well structured. I also liked the fact that the illustrations themselves are also part of the story and not only accessories, a means to show the scenes. To tell the truth, I think that  V.E. Schwab was the potential to become a must-read author to me since I really liked every book that I read by her. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Blood, Emotional abuse, Ableism, Child abuse, Death, Confinement, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Pregnancy, Bullying, Body horror, and Violence

kyrstin_p1989's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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

3.5

A hauntingly beautiful story of redemption, belonging, and the love of family. This book was very different from Addie Larue, but the storytelling is just as rich and luxurious and the images painted by the author come to life as you read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Child abuse, War, Violence, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Death, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

marareading's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.75

Alright, I get it. I finally understand why everyone was falling over themselves to get to this book. It's great. An orphan who sees ghouls, and finds her way to Gallant. An estate with a sorted history. She is mute and the adventure that is coming, so one could prepare her for. 

It is beautiful, Gothic, mysterious, and atmospheric. I devoured this book and will probably do it again. Highly recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Confinement, Murder, Blood, Bullying, Animal death, Terminal illness, Body horror, Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and Violence

saurahsaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

My favorite horror stories are both sad and spooky. This is an amazing marriage of both. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Death, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Confinement, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Gore, and Pregnancy

Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, and Medical content

penofpossibilities's review

adventurous dark mysterious relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.5

Yeah I fuck with this. Super predictable though but idm 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Blood, and Ableism

Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Suicide and Eating disorder

kassidyreads's review

dark mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Death

Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Suicide, Blood, and Death of parent

Minor: Animal death

jesselopod's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

This novel is like a dark and creepy fairytale for adults without the morality twist. It wasn’t deep tale but it was entertaining and enjoyable although

I would have liked a more conclusive ending, a greater resolution or even a better hook where my imagination could have run wild with what may have happened next

. It was exactly what I wanted to read right now, an easy to read, fast paced story which isn’t an epic multi-book journey but instead a self contained plot. The descriptions and atmosphere in the book are beautifully crafted, and I enjoyed it for the vibe more than the plot itself. The perfect thing to read after binge watching Sandman and then listening to the Stardust audiobook. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Death

Moderate: Abandonment, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Terminal illness, Blood, Child death, Chronic illness, and Confinement

Minor: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Bullying, Death, and Forced institutionalization

Content warning: sleep/nightmare/insomnia related themes

bookswithlauren's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Stated by V.E. Schwab herself: "This is not a fairy tale, it is a death tale" and if I had to sum up Gallant in one sentence, that would be it. Yet again, Schwab has imagined, built and woven together every intricate detail that creates the unique history and entity of Gallant. Usually I am not a big fan of books deemed creepy or spooky but I did enjoy reading this! The build up and mystery surrounding Olivia, her past, her family and of course, Gallant. 

Gallant was well written and kept me intrigued.  Every word is carefully chosen, and every turn of phrase conjures up images that I am rendered speechless. Gallant is such a visual story and would make a fantastic TV series adaptation. I was also very impressed with how the character of Olivia was written as non-verbal as it is not the type of representation seen in many books and I do feel that the usual stereotypes are avoided. The absence of Olivia's voice will force you to hunt for answers outside the characters. It keeps the visual aspects of things in Gallant going strong. Growing up with family members who used sign language, I was also pleasantly surprised to find the character of Edgar able to sign and give Olivia that recognition and communication that she needed.

Some of my favourite quotes include:

 “But the truth is, death is everywhere. Death comes for the roses and the apples, it comes for the mice and the birds. It comes for us all. Why should death stop us from living?” 

 “It is the difference between a language spoken and one signed, the mouth shaping words while the hands shape more, words and thoughts and feelings.” 

The main reason I did not rate this book 5 stars was because I felt the ending was too quick. Schwab is by far my favourite author and I am used to her novels having a slower build and quicker ending but even for her, I felt this was just a little too quick. Nevertheless, I still really enjoyed reading all about Olivia Prior and would definitely like a prequel all about the first battle of Gallant and the Priors.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Murder, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Blood, Confinement, and Death of parent

anntharai's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

The atmosphere of this book is phenomenally done. There are so many moments I would like to quote here, but in short this is a dark and truly haunting book with a good plot driving it and a plethora of horrific truths behind it. 

I fell that this is another one from V. E. S. that I will be thinking about for a while. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Abandonment, Suicide attempt, Gore, and Bullying

Moderate: Ableism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gun violence, Violence, and Mental illness

Minor: Animal death