Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

92 reviews

gracebrady's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

A beautiful tale of family and love. The third person POV is excellently executed. Different from the movie, but its own special story. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Murder and Panic attacks/disorders

hazelgirl21's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual content

annakinsky's review against another edition

dark emotional lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Listened to it while driving as I didn't have the physical book.

**Practical Magic** by Alice Hoffman is a story about two sisters, Gillian and Sally Owens, who are raised by their aunts, who are witches. The sisters have experienced the good and bad sides of magic since they were young.

As they grow up, Sally tries to live a normal life, while Gillian becomes a free spirit who moves from place to place. However, they cannot escape their magical background. When Gillian's boyfriend dies under strange circumstances, the sisters have to face their past and the magic that connects them.

The book is about the strong bond between the sisters, the mix of magic and everyday life, and themes of love and loss. Hoffman's writing is descriptive and engaging, making "Practical Magic" a charming and heartfelt read about family, magic, and finding one's place in the world.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Drug use, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Death

beckyhofman's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Grief, Animal death, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Stalking, Domestic abuse, and Blood

noraestelle's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

2.0

So I wanted to read this book before ever watching the movie. I always heard the movie was a classic, so I figured the book is too. Honestly, it took me way too long to figure out if I was even reading the first/right book or not. My opinion, the aunts are the only like-able characters in the whole book and I find they’re not in it enough. If you came for a cute witchy book, you’ve come to the wrong place. The only time there is any “witchy” elements in the book is when the aunts are around which isn’t often. They had too many side characters that they would insert their thoughts in, but didn’t really build those characters. Over half of the side characters I did not care about. Honestly, I would have much rather listen to Sally and her husbands love story which we barely got any of. To me that was the only love story in the book, the others were all rushed and felt forced. Not to mention literally every sexual scene feeling uncomfortable and on the verge of not consent. I kept reading this book waiting for it to get good and don’t get me wrong there were cute moments. Maybe I just had too high expectations going into it, but I don’t know. I’d say for 75% of the book I was just waiting for it to be over. I will say the narrator I liked. She sounded like Cher and I lowkey loved that. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Sexual assault

Minor: Animal cruelty, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment

frantically's review

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

absolutely beautiful 🥺 the prose in this is stunning, the characters vivid and enchanting. i love love love multi-generational stories and how we could see sally & gillian grow up and find their places in the world. have a soft spot for the aunts as well <3 this gives major winx club vibes as really, all the boys are just here to be boyfriends and nothing else

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Death, and Physical abuse

stephaniealysse's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Animal cruelty

Minor: Murder

matcha_cat's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual content, Death, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Bullying, and Grief

Minor: Animal death, Murder, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, and Death of parent

moonlightreads007's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

I really enjoyed reading this book! The plot unfolded at a relatively slow pace, but you can tell that the author has phenomenal story-telling skills based on how they describe every aspect of the story such as the characters' thoughts and feelings, the intricate detail included in each story, as well as the lessons learned from the stories and how the characters went on to apply (or not apply) those lessons in their own lives. The story really sucks you in - once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down! Thematically, the book also explores the topic of moulding yourself to fit in vs. standing out and being your authentic self, as the women in this book grapple with this issue as they explore their identities both within and outside of magic. Another interesting theme was the ever-changing nature of their relationships and life circumstances, and how those changes affected their relationships with each other as well as how they adapted to those changes. All in all, this was a very fun, interesting read and I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about friendships, family and magic✨️😊

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Sexual content, and Bullying

Minor: Death of parent and Animal death

ramakn22's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

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

2.0

I don't know what I was expecting but this wasn't it. I like the writing style, but I really disliked Jilian and Sally, like, deeply.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Alcohol, and Domestic abuse