Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

258 reviews

arikareads's review

4.0

3.5*

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder

aphrodykery's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Fatphobia and Sexual assault

mailei's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.5

once i adjusted to the vignette formatting, this book really clicked for me. the author, carmen, gives one of the most moving audiobook performances I've listened to in some time. i benefitted from hearing it with her cadence, pacing, and emotion. would recommend to anyone who's ready to take on the subject matter. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

vaaaleriechen's review against another edition

emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

4.0

devastating yet hopeful.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

kikireads1232's review

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

I think this is a great nonfiction book, but is a deeply impersonal memoir. I do think that is the point, to be more approachable to people who don't commonly read nonfiction, but it didn't really work fully for me. It was written a lot like a horror book, and while I enjoyed that aspect, it left me wanting for more input by the author. I still feel like I know so little about Machado despite reading her memoir, and while there are a lot of parts of the book that are incredibly personal, they are few in this book.

That isn't to say this is a bad book, it isn't, it just left me wanting for a book that felt like an actual memoir, that felt like someone baring their heart to me, and that just didn't happen here. That being said, it's still an amazing book, even if it wasn't what I personally wanted. It's written beautifully and has some really heart breaking insights, as well as some interesting parts of queer history on domestic abuse I haven't heard about, it made me wish there was more writing on the topic. I'd love to read a history on lesbian abuse if such thing where were exist. While a lot of her life is glossed over, the parts we do get are interesting, even if i wished she went a little deeper, and I did tear up at some parts. It also had really great quotes and I think it's a perfect book for someone who just got out of an abusive relationship and is deprogramming from it all

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Moderate: Racism and Sexual harassment

Minor: Blood and Vomit

hannahbthornton's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault

mary_wyrd's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

In the Dream House you are a prisoner to your own heart; trapped, wanting to leave. But you can't, because the house is part of you now, a house that haunts. A dream that became a nightmare. This memoir is part exorcism part rebellion and a full-throated yell against the tyranny of abuse. Machado's full range of creativity is used in excising this chapter of her life and analysing its impact. The format is inventive. Each section is told in a different genre style or trope. Each section is also short, like a glimpse through the windows of the Dream House, seeing a tense, intense relationship from various angles, before the curtains are drawn. Many chapters are told in second person present tense, placing you in the author's position, living through that relationship.  You are both victim and witness. You are Machado. You are all the women in this position who couldn't get out until they did - fatally or finally free. This is a personal study of abuse with reflections on how society has historically treated both lesbians in love and lesbians in abusive situations; with silence, disgust and distrust.  In the Dream House as personal journey is certain to join the canon of lesbian non-fiction exploring love and loathing within a lesbian context.  In the Dream House as memoir already plays a part in unravelling the lie that women can't abuse other women. They can, and those abused need to be believed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

lea_10's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Gaslighting

dcepeda's review against another edition

dark emotional funny inspiring sad tense fast-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Body shaming, Drug use, Fatphobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

melodyseestrees's review

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Alcoholism, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Fatphobia, Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts