Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Houseguest: And Other Stories by Amparo Dávila

7 reviews

orlagal's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Grief, Body horror, Murder, Torture, Vomit, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Infertility, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Violence, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, and Miscarriage

syinhui's review

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

While I liked the ambiguity and bizarreness of these short stories - and I don’t mind them being open-ended - it’s just that overall, it’s lackluster and pretty much forgettable. 

“It’s not my imagination, it’s not a dream, it’s not my nerves as you call them, it’s a reality so terrifying that it’s driving me insane, it’s being so close to death that you start to feel its chill in your bones.” 

It’s not as chilling as I thought it would be though. Strange and nightmarish? Yes. Very. But somehow nothing quite managed to unnerve me in a visceral way. The tension and air of mysticism dissipate towards the end of each story (because it’s always cut short!) leaving little to no impression. However, I do think that it perfectly captured the anguish that comes from the feeling of prolonged dissatisfaction and painful monotony of life, implacable despair – the remote hopelessness and helplessness that so afflicts the characters and severe paranoia of the unknown, pushing them to the brink of madness. 

Giving this a bonus .50 stars for the cover which I find to be the most remarkable thing in this book. Also, I wasn't sorely disappointed. Actually, I quite liked a few of the stories: Musique Concrète and Oscar, mainly because their resolutions were a bit more satisfying than the others and Haute Cuisine was oddly funny (or is it just me?) 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Body horror

Moderate: Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Murder

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Infidelity, and Stalking

ohmyhazz's review against another edition

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Sexism, Murder, Mental illness, Grief, Body horror, and Miscarriage

helenamichelle's review

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Murder, Body horror, and Death

nikachu's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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? N/A

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Blood, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Murder

I would not recommend this book to anyone who is struggling with a mental illness, as it can be quite triggering.

xaracelli's review

dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, and Mental illness

einaudikat's review

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Grief, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence