Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Normal People by Sally Rooney

296 reviews

danieben's review

dark sad medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Domestic abuse

harper11'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? Yes

1.0

One star because the only thing that pushed me through the trenches of this book was Rooney’s writing style. This book was completely and absolutely not for me, which is a shame considering the hype. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Body shaming, Physical abuse, Bullying, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Child abuse, Violence, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, and Blood

Moderate: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Racism

mangofraiche's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted sad fast-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, and Suicide

withlivjones's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

3.5

I really wanted to love this book, especially considering all the hype that surrounds it. And there were definitely things that I enjoyed about it. I thought Connell and Marianne were really interesting as individual characters, Sally Rooney is very good at creating these very flawed but nonetheless relatable and sympathetic characters. Both Connell’s struggles with his mental health and Marianne’s abuse at home which leads her to pursue toxic friendships and relationships outside her home were very interesting to read. It’s a real shame that the relationship between the two was the most boring part of the book. The sentiment of two characters whose lives are intimately tangled together is a very intriguing one, but when their relationship ends up being a continuous cycle of miscommunication after miscommunication, it gets old pretty quickly. If it’s a trope you enjoy, this book will probably be right up your street. But for me, I’ve come to realise that no matter how well written (and this is a very well written book), it’s a trope that I really don’t enjoy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Sexual content, Suicide, Alcohol, and Death of parent

Minor: Racism

aroush's review

dark emotional reflective 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Death of parent, Sexual content, and Gaslighting

orasmis's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Child abuse, Bullying, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Blood, Eating disorder, and Death of parent

moriahleigh's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Sexual violence, Death, Grief, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Child abuse and Death of parent

alice_ca_glisse's review

dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-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: Gaslighting, Grief, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, Classism, Mental illness, Child abuse, and Death of parent

ughlex's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Child abuse, and Classism

biblio_medic's review

dark emotional reflective sad 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

4.75

When I read the blurb, it was like a romance and friendship kind of scenario, but oh my God, its soo deep and dark that I absolutely loved it weirdly. I was skeptical to start the book because I'm not a big Romance reader but it changed my opinion completely. 
This book talks about a lot of complicated stuff, deals with child abuse, family relationships and toxicity, difficulty with identifying oneself, anxiety, depression,self harm and talks very openly about the sexual life of Marianne and how it was affected by her childhood trauma. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, and Mental illness