Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

317 reviews

haydenjakob18's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This is genuinely one of my favorite books. This author is so talented and I always feel like I’m right beside the characters as the story goes on. I love a T4T romance. Normally, I don’t read historical fiction/period pieces but this one was an exception, probably because of the queerness of it all. AJW, you nailed it again. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Classism

nerdydragon's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Deadnaming, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Dysphoria

nocturna_of_space's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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There was a lot about this book that I really liked. A clearly autistic protagonist was one of them. I really enjoyed Silas' characterization for the most part.

The one thing I will note is I'm not sure if the rabbit was supposed to represent self-doubt/fear or an anxiety disorder. I'm happy he was able to overcome it, but I wish its fate was more nuanced? I'm not exactly sure how to explain it? I did appreciate that Silas wasn't all 'fixed' at the end and still had to fight against PTSD from his experiences. That makes me think that the rabbit was supposed to be self-doubt/fear based, but I still didn't like the thought that Silas could just kill that part of himself.

 

Daphne was by far my favourite, and I wish we got to see much more of her in the book.

Daphne and Silas' being 2 sides of the same coin and mirrors of each other was a real credit to the story. Usually, I don't like the love at first sight trope (or love at first conversation), but this actually made sense to me.

The sanitorium/school was pretty scary for the most part.

I wish there had been more adults there. The idea that the students couldn't band together and take the Forresters down was a bit difficult to believe. In the end, that's kinda what happened. I just wonder why it didn't happen sooner.

Some of the choices that the adults in this book make does make it feel very Y/A. That's not a bad thing, just something to note. I was just lacking a sense of extreme danger in some places.

However, the abortion/c-section scene was fantastic. That whole section was done super well.

I can't decide if I want a second book or not.

The brother's takedown would be super fun. Also, I felt like that was a thread that was left loose that I would have liked to see tied up. On the other hand, I was pretty happy with the ending as a whole. The squad going to take down The Speakers is a great ending. Ok, I do actually want a second book. Mostly, I just want Silas' brother to get punched.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body shaming, Rape, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Trafficking, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia

Minor: Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt

aofthej's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Abortion

Moderate: Pregnancy

baponthecob's review against another edition

5.0

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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the ending wasnt bad but left too much up to the imagination for me. i was a little confused. the entire rest of the book was absolutely phenomenal

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Deadnaming, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Vomit, Grief, Abandonment

Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent

ivi_reads_books's review against another edition

3.75

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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Andrew Joseph White’s The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is beautifully written, intense, and deeply unsettling. Set in 1800s England, it offers a harrowing look at how trans people were pathologized and confined, themes that sadly still resonate today. The story follows an autistic, trans boy trapped in a brutal institution, fighting for survival, freedom, and the right to exist as himself. 

The medical horror is visceral—at times, too much for me—but it effectively underscores the cruelty of the world he’s up against. Despite the darkness, there’s a strong undercurrent of resilience and hope, especially in the way the protagonist slowly finds his people and his voice. 

A gripping, emotional read that’s equal parts historical, gothic, and deeply personal. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gore, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content

Moderate: Sexual violence, Pregnancy

slimygf's review against another edition

5.0

dark sad tense 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: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Injury/Injury detail

meowmeow580's review against another edition

5.0

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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incredible, delicious, scary, tense, horrific. This book will live in my head for the rest of time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment

_bookgremlin_'s review against another edition

5.0

dark tense 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: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Outing, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria

junebug555's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail