Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck

24 reviews

lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.0

I selected this as a free add-on with my Book of the Month subscription.
"Shark Heart" is a heartbreaking story that explores the depths of love and commitment we have for those around us. Lewis and Wren are living their happily ever after and are still in their honeymoon phase of being newlyweds when Lewis receives a strange diagnosis. Lewis will remember mostly everything about himself, but his body will evolve into a great white shark. Wren tries to cope with slowly losing her husband and seeks solace with a pregnant woman who is going through her own situation with someone she loves becoming an animal.
This book was strange, but not necessarily in a bad way. I think this world in which people slowly turn into animals is a great metaphor for losing people to terminal diseases. Wren is experiencing the same feelings someone might feel if they found out their husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Wren is slowly losing her husband, and there is nothing she can do to stop it. She can be his caretaker until he becomes too difficult in his primal state, and she will have to say goodbye.
This is not the first experience Wren has had with people turning into animals, and the novel does explore some of her older memories to provide more narrative on more experiences of what it is like to lose someone to this horrid disease. In this world, not every person becomes the same animal, and some animals are easier to handle than others, allowing people more time with their loved ones.
Although I think this is a beautiful story that really explores love, memory, and identity in a poetic way, it did not land for me. I was never fully invested in Wren's story, and I am not 100% sure why. My heart went out to Wren, and I felt her devastation at watching her husband slowly change, but I was never captivated enough in her story to want more.
This is an interesting book and a great run at a debut. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Violence

sby's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Death of parent

megan_mac_'s review against another edition

sad

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No

2.25

this book was not for me. I get what the author tried to do, but to me it wasn't successful. I was annoyed at a lot and overall didn't really enjoy the reading of it. Kind of a bummer. 

Best part for me was Margaret B Finnegan 😂

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy

Minor: Infertility and Miscarriage

tabookish's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

mxyfrzn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Body horror, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Rape, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Abortion, and Pandemic/Epidemic

emilywemily6's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective 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

4.5

This was weird and intriguing and I couldn’t put this book down. I loved how the book has some theatrical scenes sprinkled in. I could really see how Lewis and Wren fell for each other, they loved each other so much. I loved the prose and the questions it brought up (explicitly or implicitly) about love, change, and terminal illness. While I appreciated Angela’s story, I wish it hadn’t felt so separate from Lewis and Wren’s story; it kind of took me out of the book a little, especially with how much time was spent on Angela’s life before Wren was born. Though by the end of that section I saw how it was all connected; I wish the author had taken a different direction in connecting these stories together. And I loved the ending but wanted more! I will think about this book for a long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Sexual content, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

tarynimwalle's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

My favorite book of 2023. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Animal death and Abortion

dcoul's review against another edition

emotional fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Minor: Abortion

carlyjb16's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death and Blood

Minor: Abortion and Pregnancy

silversparkles50's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Grief, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Blood

Minor: Death of parent and Pregnancy