Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Rache im Herzen by Xiran Jay Zhao

220 reviews

msradiosilence's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Racism, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Alcohol, Confinement, Blood, Violence, Alcoholism, Classism, Colonisation, Gore, War, Misogyny, Cursing, Torture, Vomit, Body horror, Child abuse, Medical content, Murder, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

elijah__'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Torture, Addiction, Violence, and Misogyny

Moderate: War, Rape, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Murder, Body horror, and Physical abuse

analenegrace's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-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

3.0

I went into this with high hopes because of the hype it's gotten, and perhaps that's why I didn't like it as much as I hoped I would. 

It felt like too much telling and not showing, and almost all of the characters felt one-dimensional, including our narrator, whose inner dialogue was at times confusing and was expressing a type of feminism that is incredibly one-dimensional. 

The "plot twist" at the end felt obvious to me as I've seen it in many other novels of this type, but I am interested in reading the sequel to see how the author ends the story they've created here. 

I appreciated the polyam relationship and am also looking forward to seeing what the author does with their relationship in the second book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Rape, Classism, Confinement, Addiction, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Murder, Body shaming, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, War, Sexual violence, and Violence

aolney's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Addiction, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Violence, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, and Torture

Moderate: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Sexual assault, Body horror, Grief, Domestic abuse, War, Ableism, Body shaming, Murder, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

niliii's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.75

honestly i really enjoyed the entire book but the ending threw me for a loop....

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Emotional abuse, and Body horror

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Torture, and Alcohol

Minor: Death, Physical abuse, Trafficking, and Medical trauma

fe_aye's review against another edition

adventurous dark inspiring medium-paced

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

4.0

This was a ride from start to finish. A heck of a first novel. I love that Wu Zetian doesn’t have to be good, she doesn’t take the traditional ‘to do good things you must be good all the time’ bs route. She manages to make her own way against everything telling her otherwise. Solid book, would recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Classism, Gaslighting, Body horror, Death, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Rape, Confinement, and Misogyny

helfire124's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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

5.0

Great book! Couldn't put it down.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Torture, Alcohol, War, Violence, Alcoholism, Death, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Body horror, Confinement, Addiction, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Bullying, Medical content, Misogyny, Ableism, Gore, Racism, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Cursing, Gaslighting, Rape, Sexual harassment, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

finnsnotfinished's review against another edition

adventurous challenging slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Xenophobia, Body horror, Torture, Addiction, War, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Sexism, and Alcohol

Moderate: Colonisation, Confinement, and Sexual violence

pitchblackkoi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I love stuff where characters aren’t necessarily “good people.” This book delivers on this. Wu Zetian isn’t a “good” protagonist, but you understand why she is doing what she does in this book. Wrap it up in Chinese mythology and history (something I am by no means an expert in but find immensely fascinating and enjoy learning about) AND put giant robots in it and you have a book that hooks you from page one. The writing style in this book makes it a quick and easy read even as it also goes into some tough to read subjects. I loved this book and am eagerly awaiting the sequel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Sexism, Sexual content, Addiction, Body horror, Mental illness, and Torture

xosirenox's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Alcohol, Misogyny, Sexism, War, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Violence