Reviews tagging 'Dementia'

The Majesties by Tiffany Tsao

4 reviews

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

2.5

re: the ending: ??? i mean, sure? it was a big twist that contradicted the entire narrative yet simultaneously (imo) amounted to nothing of significance; it just fell flat. the prose, oh boy. it's how i write when trying to sound smart in essays, unnecessarily florid. it had a promising concept, i was hooked just from the blurb, but it didn't live up and the entire time i wasn't all that interested.
cover design review: ★★★☆☆. intriguing at first glance, i like the yellow background and the texture and shadows of the paint strokes within the face, but other than that it's eh. this is not representative of the book i just read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Car accident, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Suicide attempt, Xenophobia, Addiction, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, and Racism

Minor: Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Infertility, Abortion, Blood, Cancer, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Dementia, Terminal illness, and Vomit

re: animal cruelty and death: it's insects if that makes a difference

kikicochrane's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

There's no doubt that Tsao is a talented writer, and her use of descriptive words does transport you to the scenes that Gwendolyn is recounting as she lays comatose in a hospital bed.

As other reviewers have mentioned, this is a slow burn and the lack of enjoying the characters for their personalities does make it feel longer than the book actually is. I agree with the other reviewer that the publisher did a disservice for this being categorized as a thriller rather than a family mystery saga.

Overall I enjoyed this read, the story came together at the end and the reason why Estella murdered her entire family became clear. I especially liked how Tsao was able to weave the story behind Bagatelle throughout the story.

Content Warning: Themes of domestic abuse primarily psychological and emotional are strong themes in this novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder, Infertility, Infidelity, and Sexual content

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, and Racism

alenezela99's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

This was a great read

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Dementia, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Racial slurs

lou_o_donnell's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Dementia, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Car accident, and Domestic abuse