Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan

35 reviews

tahmida's review against another edition

dark emotional funny 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

Moderate: Sexism and Vomit

bookishbea's review

challenging emotional inspiring 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? No

4.75

Great book, but for mature teens. If you want to skip the graphic stuff, then just don't read the grandmother's journal entries. I didn't, and understood the story just fine. Other than the content issues (which really add to the gritty plot) it is an emotional book that is desperate yet hopeful. A truly moving (and harrowing) way of portraying being a lesbian within an unsupportive (downright hateful, actually) family.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Rape, and Lesbophobia

A man is murdered (off-page) due to his sexuality.

emilyeehaw's review

emotional

well that was a JOURNEY. first of all, rukhsana had some shitty ass friends. i think they were able to redeem themselves slightly by the end of the book and were at least willing to understand what she had gone through but DANG. 

also this book was INTENSE for a YA book...made me quite sad. at times i felt like the pacing was too fast but i guess that did help me get through the book at a decent rate. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia and Lesbophobia

Minor: Domestic abuse, Islamophobia, and Hate crime

tintinmd's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

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

4.5

I was in a dark place when I started this book. It was a beautiful journey, and helped me channel many feelings. It gave me hope and a very important affirmation that the life that you deserve to live the life you want to live. It's worth fighting for. And your story deserves to be heard as much as anyone else's.

The writing felt a little choppy in the beginning but I loved the story!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Rape

Moderate: Death, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Sexism, and Stalking

Minor: Islamophobia, Violence, and Vomit

rhaase0509's review

emotional inspiring slow-paced

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

3.5

This book was a little young for me, as the characters are in high school. It is difficult at times to read the choices they are making when a better alternative seems obvious. However, this is a book about teenagers, and teenagers do not always make good decisions. At one point the main character reads a diary including some intense subject matter that I did not feel like the book did enough to address. The abuse detailed in the diary seemed to be glossed over in favour of the main character's personal development. I do not think such subjects should be handled so lightly. 
Overall, the story was interesting and I enjoyed learning more about Islamic and Bengali culture.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gaslighting, Hate crime, and Homophobia

Moderate: Death, Islamophobia, and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, and Sexual assault

atrkula's review

emotional hopeful sad tense 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? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Confinement, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Violence, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Cursing

siyak_'s review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Islamophobia, Murder, Death, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Hate crime, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Violence, Torture, Misogyny, Grief, Emotional abuse, and Confinement

Minor: Vomit

karlsmariels's review against another edition

challenging tense medium-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? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Hate crime, Incest, Racism, Pedophilia, and Misogyny

katselvocki's review

dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

3.5

The good:

• Queer South Asian rep
• Rukhsana and her brother Aamir’s relationship
• Rukhsana’s relationship with her grandmother
• Rukhsana’s friendships with Irfan and Sohail
• Rukhsana and Ariana’s relationship felt very much like a teenage love story

The less good:

• HOLY HECK this got much darker than I’d anticipated 
• Pacing felt off—things dragged for a bit in the middle, but then wrapped up VERY quickly and rather tidily after the darker plot points
• Not much character development of Ariana or of Rukhsana’s best friends in Seattle
• Rukhsana and Ariana’s relationship felt very much like a teenage love story
• I am very much not over Sohail’s death even though all of the characters seem to be

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Murder

tinana's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad 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? N/A

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Sexism

Moderate: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Incest, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Torture, and Vomit

Minor: Stalking