Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Las chicas by Emma Cline

58 reviews

katelynleonardi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Child death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault

kingcrookback's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

In terms of the subject matter--that is, girlhood, abuse, and the capability/desire to enact violence--The Girls is in the same vein as Gillian Flynn's Sharp Objects. However, The Girls is a much slower, almost meditative experience than Flynn's novella. The crime itself is nearly an afterthought. The majority of the focus is on the buildup to the horrific event. The prose is beautifully descriptive but laconic at times. I suggest having a lighthearted, uplifting read lined up after this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, and Infidelity

Minor: Classism and Death of parent

annasophie's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

3.25 - I liked the writing itself more than the story. I actually marked many phrases and passages because they stuck out to me, and I’m excited to explore more of Cline’s work. The setting was what drew me to the novel originally; there’s just something about 20th Century southern California, no matter the exact decade, that fascinates me. Truly one of my favorite geographical settings for stories, especially since I cannot think of one happy, non-depressing, non-messed up story set in Cali off the top of my hat. Somehow the Californian atmosphere just demands gloomy stories that palpably feel like inhaling the dark, heavy smog on a hot day in LA. 
The idea of taking the Manson Family and the infamous murder of Sharon Tate as starting point was also incredibly intriguing to me but I just couldn’t fully get into the plot. I guess I’m just not big on the pairing of little girls, drugs, sex, abuse and manipulation, even in a story that’s as intriguing as the Manson Family. I love the exploration of dark psychology, trauma, and all things, except when it involves underage girls. Maybe it’s because I watched the movie 13 when I was way too young and now I’m just over those stories. It’s a good book, it’s very well written, but it just wasn’t for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Gaslighting, Murder, Toxic friendship, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual content

Moderate: Body shaming

Minor: Death of parent, Eating disorder, and Self harm

grboph's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

This was the first book I finished in 2022, and it was a very good one!! I have been very fascinated with cults recently, and this was a good deviation from a lot of the nonfiction things I have been using to learn about them (the cult in this book is clearly based on the Manson Family). Emma Cline is a wonderful writer, and it is somewhat hard to believe that this was the first book she ever wrote. I found Evie to be a very interesting character, and I think she had a good arc. The thing I liked the most about this book was that Evie felt very relatable, which was nice for me since I hadn't really encountered many teenage-girl characters like that in adult novels before. Then that scared me a little because I realized that maybe I could have fallen into something like Evie did if I had found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time when I was that age. I don't know if this was something Cline did on purpose, but either way, it made the book all the more thought-provoking. Overall, The Girls was a unique and engaging book and I enjoyed every second I spent reading it. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in cults or the 1960s as a time period, or anyone looking to read a unique story of any kind.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Child death

Moderate: Cursing, Excrement, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, and Physical abuse

Minor: Bullying, Confinement, and Blood

This is a book about a violent, manipulative cult that culminates with a relatively graphic description of the murders of four people, one of whom is a young child. Also, the whole reason that the main character is drawn into the cult in the first place is because of someone she has an obsession with who is quite manipulative and cruel.

readingrainbow_butmakeitspoopy's review against another edition

dark sad tense

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Addiction, Blood, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, and Violence

kayesomething's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Murder, Violence, and Eating disorder

Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Blood, and Body shaming

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, and Ableism

lavieenrose's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

1.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Ableism, and Body shaming

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, and Sexual content

saowahreads's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

4.75

i thought this was a really good easy beach read. knew about the manson family prior so it was interesting to see emma cline build on the existing murders. i enjoyed the author’s writing style i thought it was really easy to read and understand. in conclusion i really enjoyed this book  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Death, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, and Drug abuse

Minor: Blood, Child abuse, and Child death

poppyseedbagel's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Child death, Death, Drug use, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Violence

alexandras_reads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Really great read, I enjoyed it from the start to finish. Every time I picked it up I was so invested in finding out what happened next. Cline organizes the book in a manner of flashbacks and the present day, which I liked, but I think I would be more invested in finding out even more about her time with the girls and Russel. Also, I feel like she introduces characters in the 'present' chapters without going into much depth, which makes me think that said characters did not have to be introduced... 
Regardless, "The Girls" had been on my TBR list for ages and I'm really so glad i was able to finally read it! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Drug use

Minor: Body horror and Child death