Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers

7 reviews

verityglendenning's review

funny reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

spookyaz's review

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

3.25

I liked the writing and descriptions and all of the little details. I did not like the treatment of queer and neurodivergent people in this book- very underdeveloped and full of harmful stereotypes and such. That being said, I guess I didn't really expect anything more from most fiction books unless they're explicitly written by/for queer/neurodiverse folks. Sad but true. I also did not like how the romance took over the plot from the original mystery. The ending I found jarring and very much an "excuse me???" moment. Not to say that it was necessarily a completely bad ending. The plot twists were not things I saw coming, but that's a usual thing with me. I don't know if I'd recommend this book to people, to be honest- I might have to sit with my thoughts a bit more.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Homophobia, Ableism, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Abortion, Confinement, Death, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Medical trauma

rosalynemily's review

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

I would be giving this book 5 stars, no question if it wasn't for <the ending, which I found unnecessarily heartbreaking! The book was perfectly finished without this heartbreaking final event, and it just seemed to be unnecessary upset for the reader to endure!> 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Rape, Abortion, Cancer, Medical content, Confinement, Death, Dementia, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness

vinnyvince's review

emotional hopeful mysterious relaxing sad slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical content, Death, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Homophobia

Minor: Chronic illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Rape, Terminal illness, Sexual assault, and Mental illness

betsygrace's review

dark mysterious relaxing medium-paced

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

3.25

One woman claims she had a virgin birth. When a local journalist begins to investigate, she discovers things are more complex than they appear. Through a twisting web of secrets, the truth comes out and changes everything— with a twist at the end. 

I feel like Gretchen is aspec. This book is dialogue heavy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Chronic illness, and Rape

Moderate: Infidelity, Medical content, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Sexual assault

Minor: Drug use

mondayisms's review

relaxing fast-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

3.0

This book had too many plot points that didn’t thread together as cleverly as the author may have hoped. The main character was snooze-boring and everyone else was not handled with care. Mostly, the only reason I kept reading was to get confirmation on what really happened (predictable), and the explanation and reveal was also handled so, so poorly.

Finally, the ending was really out of place and rushed. The “shock” had no value and belonged to a completely different book.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Rape, and Sexual violence

katie_biggs7's review

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• 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: Mental illness and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Rape, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy