Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

Snow by John Banville

30 reviews

mantnam's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

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jwilkey's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

2.75

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bigleoenergy's review against another edition

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2.0

The book is well-written and atmospheric, but I ultimately did not enjoy it at all, and am honestly the wrong audience.
Given the murdered priest premise, it's not hard to predict that this book would go where basically every piece of crime media involving a priest goes, but I was wholly unprepared to get passages from the point of view of a pedophile. If I'd given it some thought before starting, I probably would not have dove into it, as I'm generally uninterested in knowingly getting into something with sexual violence, but if I'd known that we'd get to be inside the head of said pedophile and have to hear his thoughts and urges, I DEFINITELY would not have picked this up.
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drsarahgrace's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

*Very* disturbing at times, but extremely well written.
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justcallme_d's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

1.0

TW: pedophilia, sexual abuse

No, just no. This book makes me so mad. This did not need to exist. This is unbelievable that this was published in 2020. Not only is it boring and extremely predictable (ridiculously so that you think "surely, there has to be more?"), but it is disgusting and creepy and cliché. The portrayal of women, sexual abuse, and child molestation are disturbing and completely unchallenged. 

What a embarrassment. 
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guyc1992's review against another edition

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emilydg's review against another edition

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

3.5

I loved the writing style, the author transported me to a wintry Ireland of the time and the pace, though slow, was almost soothingly so. 
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travelseatsreads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A well constructed murder mystery which kept tension slowly simmering throughout.
I didn't love or hate this one but thought the interlude while downright disgusting was fantastically well done. A brave move by Banville to try and get into the heads of these absolute monsters.
I felt Jenkins going missing was done in a bit of a lazy fashion and felt like it was there just to wrap up the plot at the end, and think developing that aspect of the story may have been more beneficial than the countless unnecessary pubs scenes.
A solid 3 star for me, a good read but nothing spectacular.
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helenfarch's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

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devilstatedan's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

An outstanding piece of gothic noir literary historical crime writing! A young 1950's detective is called to an estate in Ireland to determine who killed the local priest. The priest's body has been mutilated and the crime is under threat of being suppressed by the catholic church higher-ups, who have a loose control over Ireland. The detective's journey is mysterious and as he attempts to deduct the truth from the constant lies of those around the estate. The cast of characters is interesting and all are self-serving in one way or another, and Banville's way with words is something to marvel at indeed, as he describes the oppressive environment of freezing snow and relentless cold. It's gothic and dark and the subject matter becomes increasingly challenging as the story unravels and we learn the truth of just who all these people really are beneath the surface. Truly amazing writing.
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