Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

56 reviews

kirstinlwx's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny inspiring 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Physical abuse, Racism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Alcoholism, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Blood, Gun violence, Infertility, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Classism, Body shaming, and Cursing

regardsrachel's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective tense 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? It's complicated

4.25

I am a white person living in the United States reading this book and engaging with the material therefore  I am engaging with the story from my particular perspective and perception.  I knew through religion and social studies classes, readings and so on that caste is a complicated and nuanced system and can be even more specific when it comes to where it's happening and how it's practiced. Also, I think I had a better experience or was able to at least couch this story in a complicated multi-faceted context because I had listened to a podcast episode about Phoolan Devi.  I already knew her story and the aspects that show just how dark patriarchal violence and misogyny can get. I feel that I was coming into the story with a bit of a leg up or in a helpful mindset because I had already had that for knowledge.  I think I gained more from the story with that for knowledge and therefore I could more immerse myself in the journey that Geeta was having in regards to her actions and her emulation of Phoolan Devi but also where she still had concerns or was wrestling with how to be herself but also protect herself in the way Phoolan Devi did. I am not critiquing accuracy in the story, I am explaining my engagement with the book due to the knowledge I had before reading.

 Frankly, I thought the societal norms and rules were done well in the fact that yes there are these rules or yes these are the societal norms in which these characters are living however individuals will have their own relationship with those societal norms and communities will have their own unique relationship within these societal norms. I felt that the story captured that instead of making it a widespread condemnation of society in the book. 

The women felt like different types of women with their own distinctive motives and then also were complicated entities that were not villains but still monstrous.

The conflict made sense and was never in doubt.  I enjoyed the story and the end landed for me.  Which was quite a few considering all the pieces that had to be put together in the end.If anything the story displayed the layers and nuances of the conflicts really well.  rape murder Justice in society are hard topics attack to tackle while keeping the plots/story nimble and moving forward. Also, I felt dread throughout reading it almost like a wait for it or a strain on my chest.  I think I knew something was amiss throughout the book in regards to various aspects of the plot and the way that the stakes were explained in the story also added to the constant tension in the book.

 If there were aspects of the story that seemed illogical or at least their descriptions were surface level I did not care because I was having a good time.  I thought travel and the homes being the key settings make sense.  This is a village that is cut off from urban areas by distance. However the way technology reduces that distance be a TV television and radio was also included in the text which helped bring depth and uniqueness to the setting. I also thought The considerations that the characters had also added to the setting in that this is an area where it seemed public bathrooms were not readily available.   

 The dialogue with other characters brought a comedy to the story.  The dialogue in the book and how big of a difference it is in regards to phrases and conversation styles I felt was on purpose. She wanted this contrast of language and dialogue to be part of the story. I'm not exactly sure of the reason, at least for me what I think it did is it did not bother the characters in a way that I think sometimes these types of stories and when told make it sound like this story and these characters are on another planet instead of on planet Earth. The change in language pulled me in as a reader emotionally that I did not expect. 

I'm a little surprised at how much I enjoyed this book.  I wasn't sure about the premise as the dark themes can sometimes way down the story and in a way can use the triggering nature of them to hold together the story.  But Bandit Queens didn't do that.  The relationships of the women are the focal point and they're struggles relating to Phoolan Devi.  The relationship or the comparison that's supposed to be made between Gita and Saloni and the others in regards to the story and myth of Phoolan Devi is navigated and discussed throughout the story without a final answer but at least an answer that these characters could continue to live in. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Police brutality, Animal cruelty, Blood, Sexism, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Death, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Classism, Religious bigotry, and Physical abuse

rnbhargava's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing 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

4.25

This book is a great dark comedy. If anything, I wanted even more chapters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Blood, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Body shaming, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Slavery, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Bullying, Classism, Grief, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, and Infidelity

There is evidence of all of these triggers but essentially all of it gets avenged or is discussed regarding how unfair it is. No characters performing these triggers fully gets away with anything. That said, our core group of characters also do plenty of awful things. It’s a dark comedy with murders. Brace yourself.

yuyuv's review

challenging dark emotional funny sad tense fast-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Infidelity, Medical content, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Infertility, Abandonment, Drug abuse, Ableism, Addiction, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer

prinzessin_aj's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Grief, Police brutality, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Cursing, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Misogyny, Islamophobia, Death, Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Rape, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Minor: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Fatphobia

cantfindmybookmark's review against another edition

dark funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, and Infertility

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, and Rape

alexisgarcia's review

adventurous dark funny tense 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

5.0

this book was just downright fun. despite the heavy topics (check content warnings!!!), this book is full of interesting characters and humor. i very rarely find a book that is just a really good time so this was such a good find! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Physical abuse, Blood, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Domestic abuse, and Violence

dan047's review against another edition

adventurous funny inspiring fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Murder, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Rape

uz_kostlivec's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring tense 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

3.75

I'm so happy to come across this book and to have read it. I've never read anything quite like it, especially in this cultural setting. I really enjoyed learning more about the Indian and Hindu culture. I loved the plot and appreciated all the topics and themes. Female power, the power of (female) friendship... Beautiful. I can't wait to read up more on the real life Phoolan Devi, especially her autobiography. Please take time to read the author's note.

As a committed dog lover who passionately advocates for #adoptdontshop I adored the whole Bandit subplot. What a wonderful surprise that I didn't expect. 

The reason why I don't give it more stars is that the humour oftentimes didn't work for me actually, I found it even cringey and forces sometimes. Also, while I liked the plot a lot, I didn't like the way several of the important passages in the story developed - they were either too fast, too slow or not as well though through. Also, to me it seemes like the author's writing style wasn't consistently good - there were parts where I was actually even annoyed by it and found it hard to pay attention, but then, at the same time, there were many beautifully witten quotable parts that made up for it for me.

Sita was addmitedly a top-notch lady: levelheaded, bright, kind and loyal. But in idealizing her suffering, people justified Ram's punitiveness. An apology, for fuck's sake, would have gone a long way. But from the get-go, they trained boys not to apologize and women not to expect it of them, to instead mutate pain into an art form.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

saurahsaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring 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? Yes

4.75

Goodness, I love this book. At times grueling to read when it showcased female trauma in all its myriad forms, but always worth the journey. Beautifully told, fucking hilarious, and impossible to put down. I fucking love this book and know I’m going to revisit it over the years for its universal truths.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Murder, Addiction, Abandonment, Bullying, Classism, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cursing, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Rape, Ableism, Infertility, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, and Body shaming

Minor: Excrement, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicide, and Drug use