Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver

32 reviews

heather34's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, Gun violence, Child abuse, and Mass/school shootings

annahollamby's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.0

thought-provoking, disturbing, and ultimately, i fear, unforgettable. the detailed writing really adds to the realism of the story. eva, our narrator, is unlikeable but certainly enthralling. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, Animal death, Grief, Gaslighting, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Excrement, Child abuse, Mass/school shootings, and Gun violence

aliengirlreads's review against another edition

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Grief, Child abuse, Child death, Murder, and Hate crime

Moderate: Pregnancy, Racial slurs, and Racism

kira_sha2024's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Mass/school shootings, and Child abuse

nialystic's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense

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

5.0

I really loved this book

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Gore, Grief, Bullying, Child abuse, Violence, Cursing, Excrement, Gun violence, Murder, Racial slurs, and Sexual harassment

megelizabeth's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.5

I'm glad I finally got around to reading this, having had it sitting on my shelves for ages and having heard so much about it over the years. It's a slow, dense read, and not at all an enjoyable one, but definitely a fascinating one overall. The ending also really surprised me, and it's definitely well-written and cleverly thought-out as a whole. The main thing that stopped me giving this a higher rating is that, while the protagonist is clearly deliberately unlikeable, there were times where it wasn't clear whether particular awful things were purely Eva or instead were reflective of the author's views. I also really struggled to see any real love or connection between Eva and her husband, which made that element of the story (and it's quite a big one) super hard to care about or link with everything else.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Child abuse, Blood, Death, Child death, and Racism

Moderate: Animal cruelty

Minor: Genocide

ellilo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Body horror, Child death, Child abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy

hysrae's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Mass/school shootings, Death, Violence, and Gun violence

Minor: Bullying, Eating disorder, Incest, Medical content, Body shaming, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, and Xenophobia

thereadingdude's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, and Child death

Moderate: Rape and Child abuse

Minor: Body horror, Pregnancy, and Racial slurs

bumblebeekimmy's review

dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Minor: Child abuse