Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Earthlings by Sayaka Murata

186 reviews

silvasketches's review against another edition

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If you're considering reading this book, please take a moment to read the trigger warnings first. Don't make the same mistake I did and dive in blindly. I managed to get through 32% of it, but it was too much for me to handle.

 I previously enjoyed another book by this author, the convenience store one, and I adored the main character. She was incredibly interesting. However, the male character in this book made the reading experience unpleasant for me, although I did enjoy the other aspects of the story. I hoped this one would be better.

Initially, I was drawn to the innocence of the main character and the magical girl/ alien elements in this book, so I had high hopes for it. Unfortunately, I was quickly bombarded with trigger after trigger. I attempted to continue reading, but the content related to school was simply overwhelming.
the teacher raped the girl and it was descriptive on page

 I'm hopeful that I'll be able to forget what I read soon.

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majorchachi's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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departedglories's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75


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theonlymg's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

3.5


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giftofthegab's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

ALMOST EVERY TRIGGER WARNING NEEDS TO BE APPLIED TO THIS BOOK
I thought this book was going to be an easy 5 stars, but the last part changed that...
The pacing, the story, the protagonist's traumatic, disturbed childhood and later approach to her wellbeing, are ingredients to make a stunner of a page-turner for me!
However, the pacing slows down in Chapter 5 (whilst the final chapter absolutely makes up for it) and that's the only reason it can't make the full five stars. Weird to say considering the unpredictability of this book, but a few of the plot lines were predictable too which lowered the rating a little more. But, a strong 4.5 stars, and desperately want to more books by Murata!

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iheartm4m's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny sad tense medium-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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paulinskiii's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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mariya_g8's review against another edition

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challenging dark fast-paced

4.0


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auteaandtales's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I don’t think ‘enjoyed’ is really the right word for this. I have a weak stomach so, a lot of the time, I was disgusted and it was a difficult and challenging read. 

Saying that, I did enjoy the social commentary about the ‘Factory’ and how our bodies don’t belong to us. I also enjoyed the storytelling via Piyyut and Planet Popinpobopia. Much like I did with Convenience Store Woman, I really related to the main character and I, too, spent my childhood wondering when my ‘real’ family, the aliens, would come and take me back home (although this was told in a much darker way). 

I’m sure this will be on my mind for a long time, much in the way Convenience Store Woman was. I would definitely read up on the trigger warnings before diving in, though, even if you don’t usually need them. It’s quite disturbing. 

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sinja_a's review against another edition

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dark 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

2.0

Trauma galore. Painfully so. Unhinged for the sake of being unhinged. I understand why there are people enjoying this. I am not one of them. 
Please check trigger warnings. There is rarely something that fades to black. To go into this blind is not a good idea. 

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