Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Tell Me I'm Worthless by Alison Rumfitt

55 reviews

catatlanta's review

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

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

I don’t know how to rate this. An uncomfortable, compelling, experimental exploration of fascism, and particularly the rise of transphobia in the UK. Genuinely horrifying and painfully real even in its most exaggerated moments. Essential queer reading but not something I am comfortable recommending. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Body horror, Transphobia, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Dysphoria, Homophobia, Antisemitism, Vomit, Rape, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Torture, Sexual assault, Gore, Excrement, Violence, Racism, Emotional abuse, and Blood

Moderate: Drug use, Suicide, Addiction, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Suicide attempt

antimony's review against another edition

challenging dark tense

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

4.0

REALLY difficult to read not because of the writing but because of like. everything that happens. but it was good

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Gore, Transphobia, Sexual content, and Antisemitism

ellislilylovestoread's review

dark

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Antisemitism, Hate crime, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Torture, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Vomit and Excrement

abril_chavez's review

dark reflective sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Mental illness, Bullying, Gaslighting, Violence, Cursing, Death, Body horror, Hate crime, Sexual content, Torture, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Murder, Body shaming, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Hate crime, and Genocide

elenavarg's review

dark emotional sad tense 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

4.0

It’s been a while since a horror book managed to truly horrify me, but this one certainly did. It had an overpowering sense of dread through-out as well as some truly terrifying scenes. It managed to walk the thin line between misery porn/exploitation and horror imagery.

I’m taking off one star because some of the more stream of conciousness chapters were not for my liking (they’re very hard for me to read, so I don’t enjoy them as a stylistic choice), one particularly on the nose scene of swastika-related body-horror (the scene was so absurd it made me laugh) and the weird, off-putting feeling I get when I’m not quite sure of an author’s ethnicity while their work discussed racism (I couldn’t find out, if Rumfitt herself is Jewish and/or brown; if so, this critisism is totally unrelated and unfounded).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Body horror, Hate crime, Blood, Antisemitism, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Rape, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, Excrement, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Drug use, Mental illness, Violence, Racism, Death, Deadnaming, Cursing, Xenophobia, and Self harm

Moderate: Islamophobia, Grief, Confinement, Sexual content, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Dysphoria, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

gellyreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I really like the idea of this book more than the actual book. I think the way some of the conflict resolution was a bit too neat and some of the POV switching was a bit too jarring.

Like, we just resolve her being transphobic and the fact that the house raped both of them by just saying well, they love each other? And not showing that conversation on page, but I read how many gross rants?! K.

Overall, this was worth reading, but I don’t know that I would say that it was enjoyable or especially deep, since it essentially throws the message continuously at your face. But that’s also the point, and it feels needed. But it also feels less artistic that way? I don’t know. I’m so conflicted on this one… 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Racial slurs, Toxic friendship, Rape, Transphobia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Racism, Torture, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, and Self harm

ciaranolio's review

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

5.0

One of my favourite books, outright. An incredible, twisted horror story about fascism, womanhood, and social privilege, revolving around a haunted house (which is also England), among the finest of its kind in the storied and ghost-ridden neighbourhood of horror writing. Reminiscent of Gretchen Felker-Martin and Jonathan Sims in writing style and subject matter, this book concerns itself heavily with radicalisation, gender, and intersections of identity. Rumfitt's POV characters are incredible, both sympathetic and unlikeable in their own wholly separate ways. A must read, in my mind, for those not immediately put off by the graphic subject matter. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Racism, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Sexual assault, Rape, Body horror, and Violence

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Physical abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Blood, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Self harm, Gore, Homophobia, Islamophobia, and Body shaming

Minor: Alcohol, Deadnaming, Drug use, Genocide, Colonisation, Dysphoria, Gaslighting, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, and Animal death

Violent nazism, fascism, and especially modern white nationalism are at the core of this book. Proceed with caution if these are difficult topics, as Rumfitt (quite rightly) pulls no punches with the subject of the horror she describes.

vixenreader's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

4.5

A phenomenal novel, if not entirely enjoyable, it is a harrowing exploration of trauma through bigotry and intergenerational fascism can lead to prejudice and self-loathing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Cursing, Gaslighting, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Outing, Death, Murder, Self harm, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, and Sexual content

Moderate: Deadnaming, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Vomit, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, War, and Excrement

Minor: Ableism, Suicidal thoughts, and Abandonment

Be prepared for instances of INCEL culture, terrorism, bombing, disturbing hate symbols, TERF culture, woman-on-woman sexual assault, serial killing, self-hatred, strap-on sex, the loss of a friend, and public sex.

rachelnoel's review

dark medium-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Gore, Toxic friendship, Grief, Death, Transphobia, Hate crime, Vomit, Rape, Body horror, Violence, and Sexism

Minor: Deadnaming, Alcohol, Bullying, Classism, and Colonisation

haileyhardcover's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Do you ever finish a book and have a headache but, like, in a good way? Like you’re going to need several hours or maybe several lifetimes to process what the fuck you just read? Like you’ve just emerged, somehow physically unscathed, from a gruesome fever dream made real? That is how I felt after finishing Tell Me I’m Worthless. 

How can I even explain to you that this book is not SCARY, but it IS terrifying? It is horrific in a way that I wasn’t fully prepared for, and also in ways that I can’t even fully comprehend. It’s gutting. It will haunt me, and I’m grateful. 

Please read the trigger warnings before reading

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Antisemitism, Blood, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Self harm, Transphobia, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Drug abuse, Violence, Suicide, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Bullying, Hate crime, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual harassment, and Transphobia