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izypup's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.75
I don’t think any of the characters behaved in ways that felt like the author jumped the shark because I believed that these characters had the capabilities of acting irrationally.
Natsuki’s childhood in particular felt well-written and really hooked me and I specifically enjoyed the way disassociation was framed and how child minds rationalize things in ways that aren’t actually rational.
While some of the themes were disturbing, it’s never very explicit in its descriptions even though you know exactly what’s happening. It doesn’t read as shock horror and while parts were gross, it didn’t put me off from the book.
Graphic: Sexism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Body shaming, Death, Confinement, Child abuse, Blood, Cannibalism, Misogyny, and Incest
Moderate: Grief, Violence, Pregnancy, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Vomit, Animal death, Bullying, Stalking, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
yasmin_raev's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Pedophilia, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Gore, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Rape, Acephobia/Arophobia, Death, Incest, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Infidelity and Fatphobia
5_doogwood_drive's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
im gonna stay in bed today.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Murder, Cannibalism, Violence, Pedophilia, and Child abuse
Moderate: Incest, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Blood, Grief, and Physical abuse
Minor: Body shaming, Suicide, Fatphobia, and Bullying
karmachamillionaire's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Blood, Child abuse, Gore, Murder, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Incest, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide
Moderate: Death of parent and Mental illness
Minor: Fatphobia
justmys's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Sayaka Murata has a hell of a skill in making you deeply, deeply uncomfortable very quickly. This book begins following an autistic girl who doesn't fit in with the world but has found her coping mechanisms through fantasy and a friend in her cousin who thinks similarly. And then...we just yeet ourselves off the cliff entirely.
We go from child using fantasy to find understanding in a world that's always just to the left of their understanding, to SA to finally
I mean, hats off to Murata for the book. Just as disturbing and powerful as Convenience Store Woman. She writes neurodiversity and the way the world is viewed with such terrifying accuracy and isn't afraid or ashamed to tackle hard topics through their lenses.
But, yeah, fair warning going in this gets wild and dark fast. The ending felt like I'd stepped off the edge of a hill and was rolling fast to the rocks below.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Gore, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Cannibalism, Death, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Rape
Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Alcohol, Bullying, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide attempt, and Body shaming
Please read Trigger Warnings before going into this one if it's something you require. The most notable right off the bat are: Child SA Grooming Child Abuse SA Cannibalismareen's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Child abuse
Moderate: Murder, Bullying, and Incest
Minor: Blood, Confinement, and Fatphobia
spang's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Physical abuse, Bullying, Rape, Emotional abuse, Cannibalism, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Fatphobia
saj04's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Body horror, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Incest, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Fatphobia
cyntismiles's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
I thought this book explored some dark responses to trauma and how our early experiences trying to figure out how the world works either help or hinder us. It is an interesting thought piece on the expectations of society and how they are often duplicitous. It is very gut-wrenching seeing how the main character(s) react to their various traumas. This is told from a perspective that is questionable in a way where we can both witness their perspective and as a reader see beyond their perspective. It is a horrifying and sad tale often crossing lines that leave the reader asking "wait, really?". There were many moments where I thought to myself "this has really gone off the rails!" and then it got even wilder.
I found the twists and turns of the story very disturbing. The author did a wonderful job of leading the reader in certain directions where it felt like things might get better and then twisting the narrative this way and that. I wish I could read the original text to compare because I felt like there were some areas in which the translation may have been lacking. Alas, I do not know Japanese so I don't know if this was the original writing or translation. It wasn't that big of a deal, just some word choices that I felt were odd.
I don't know that I can "recommend" the book per se as it is so graphic and disturbing. I believe the author executed the premise well and it's a quick read which I think is to its benefit considering the content. It is to the point and gets its point across well. If you are interested in this book, I highly recommend reading the content warnings as I did not. I use StoryGraph which has a good program for content warnings.
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Body horror, Homophobia, Cannibalism, Murder, Suicide attempt, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Vomit, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Eating disorder
Minor: Suicide
shrimpseas's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Murder, Cannibalism, Confinement, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Sexual assault, Body horror, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, and Sexism
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Pregnancy, and Body shaming
Minor: Suicidal thoughts