Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Das neunte Haus by Leigh Bardugo

284 reviews

metaphorical_disaster's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

I don’t even know how to feel after finishing this book. 
I definitely liked it. The story itself was unique and could be interpreted many ways to reflect the world today. The characters (most of them, anyway) had been pretty fleshed out and easy to understand their choices and actions. 
My only gripe is that the first bit of the book was so very confusing. I had to reread the first 5 chapters twice because it felt like I was losing my mind. 
The story does pick up and, while there are still very confusing bits in the middle, it’s beautiful and clever and dark and hopeful all at once. 
This is DEFINITELY one of those books I would have to give a second read through to fully appreciate the story. Until I give it another go, I’m leaving it at a 3⭐️ because it’s still worth the read. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Addiction, Blood, Death, and Drug abuse

paperbacklyds's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Body horror, Blood, Gore, Medical trauma, Rape, Murder, Medical content, Drug abuse, Death, Drug use, Addiction, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Mental illness

overbookedmama's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

 Alex is a 20-year-old HS dropout who gets plucked from her hospital bed as the sole survivor of a vicious murder to become a member of Lethe, a prestigious watchdog organization set up to keep Yale’s eight secret societies (houses of The Veil) in line. Most students at Yale are selected for their academic achievements. Alex can see ghosts (Grays) and the higher-ups have decided this particular gift is useful to exploit. If you strip back the dark academia setting, secret societies, occult, and paranormal, Ninth House is a murder mystery at its core. If you get wrapped up in conspiracy theories, you could have a lot of fun with this book. Or it might keep you up reading all night trying to put the pieces together and guess who’s to blame. It took me the first four chapters to figure out the structure of the novel but once I got used to the world-building and flashbacks, I found a good rhythm with the book. I don’t think it’s for everyone, though. Alex is an outsider and she’s the real highlight of the story. Her grit made so many aspects of the story feel raw. The entire story is dark and unsettling but in a way that you just can’t look away. You’ll be fighting for a resolution alongside the whole cast of characters. I did not see the twist at the end coming. I never do. I’m eager to pick up Hell Bent next! Psst… Check the content warnings and be wary of any scene with a bathroom. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Sexual violence, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Drug use, Death, and Classism

cosmoscryptid's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Rape, Physical abuse, and Gore

Minor: Vomit, Addiction, and Alcohol

mackenziebh's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Death, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Rape

dayabraxas's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-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 mean this in the best way when I say I had no clue what was coming next at ANY point in this book. I ADORE Alex Stern and her badassery. This book kept a fast pace and kept me on my toes. A mega mystery conspiracy where I never knew who to trust and who to blame until the last page (and I suppose that may even change in Book 2). Great writing, humorous main character, and badass women.
Major trigger warnings for SA, drug use, and r*pe (as traumatic experiences of characters), along with lots of gore and violence.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Blood, Excrement, Drug use, Death, Drug abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Body horror, and Cursing

mc_castle's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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

4.25

I don't know if I enjoyed it, but I was GRIPPED. It's was a blend of dark academia, fantasy, a commentary on the upper classes and a murder mystery. Everything bad that could happen to someone happened to the protagonist but with ghosts involved. Also was interesting pacing as it wasn't linear storytelling, especially at the beginning where you're thrown into a weird future telling ritual, where a group of students reach into a man's innards to predict the stock market prices. With NO context. I was very confused at first. Also why do college kids have so much power? Read to find out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Torture, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Bullying, Colonisation, Death, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Blood, Classism, Mental illness, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Violence, Gore, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, and Drug abuse

marg0tte1109's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Death, Self harm, Cursing, Sexual violence, Addiction, Body horror, Blood, Classism, Drug abuse, Gore, Drug use, Murder, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault

frawst_disasta_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

This book has everything I love: fully realized characters, dark moments, fantasy, and budding friendship. What it doesn’t have, which is refreshing, is romance. This is what A Discovery of Witches should have been, and could have been, if Matthew was a differently written character.

There are graphic scenes, though, and a couple descriptions left me feeling sick.

I couldn’t give it five stars, because I felt the prologue and first chapter didn’t draw me in, so much as confuse me. However, chapter two helped and I found after that, the timelines were fascinating, not just confusing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Body horror, Vomit, Blood, Classism, Gore, Addiction, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Child abuse

trippyotter's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Addiction, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Mental illness, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Rape