Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling

10 reviews

bethboo's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

I went into this book blind, and ended up scolding myself for not doing it sooner. I worked at a bookstore when this novel released and I remember the hype around it and dismissed it and now I feel like a FOOL. 

We follow a practical and clever woman, Jane, in her quest to obtain a husband, so not to burden her adoptive parents. Once she brokers a deal with an accomplished and genuine docter, she realizes that this marriage might not be simply business like she thought. He offers much more than financial security, but seems to have more skeletons in the closets than she anticipated. As clever as she is, Jane might not make it through with reason and will alone. A gothic tale that felt real and confusing and startling, almost as if the reader was the main character. Normal life gets shattered by secrets and madness and magic and death and darkness and emotion. 

The characters were perfectly flawed. They all felt like real people doing the best they could with what they had been given. I was eager to get any information I could on the confusing secrets Jane was given, making the book hard to put down. Because while they were weird, it wasn't outright suspicious, so it gave me pause and sympathy. This author did a wonderful job with the main voice and presenting us with just enough details without making it blatantly obvious or mind-bendingly confusing. I've already added her other works to my TBR pile and will definitely enjoy them. 

You HAVE to read this book. It was spooky and creepy and real and made me feel like I was losing my mind.

Jane was a brilliant main character. Yes there were times where I wanted to shove her face into her husband's and scream at them to kiss and make up, but the plot must proceed. I was rooting for her the entire time, even though it got hard to once she kinda started losing it. But I just wanted her and Augustine to be happy so badly! I didn't really see the ending coming and I'm not sure how you could, with how unique the author's magic system is. And while its definitely weird, it's not too weird. I did kind of like how confusing the magic was, because it felt like it was that way for the users too. It definitely gave the vibes of the ending of The Haunting of Hill House (Netflix Series, not the book). How Elenore was her own haunting in the end. Like Ellie was the Broken-Neck Lady and Jane was Ellidy, Augustine's dead wife's ghost.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Medical content, and Terminal illness

smylieman's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Medical trauma, Blood, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, and Medical content

Moderate: Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

loujanae's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

A gothic horror? A gothic romance? A gothic anything should be dripping in atmosphere. It should be flooded with tension and a living, breathing setting. I should have felt dread from the escalating tension of the romance, the mystery, the occult. This didn't have anything in common with a gothic novel. It was all tell, no show. Characters showing up to info dump a plot, and disappearing when no longer relevant and useful to the author. Every chapter sat us down and explained more and more without actually saying anything of note. Overexplained, underdeveloped. I think I'm one of the few people who actually "understood"  what was going on in chapter zero, (if it can truly be understood at all, no shade at all to everyone who couldn't grasp what was going on, I don't blame you!) and that ending was still a confusing and convoluted mess. There were so many ideas here that were SO interesting. But there was absolutely zero follow through on those interesting ideas.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Drug use, Medical content, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Gaslighting, Gore, Pregnancy, Death, Blood, and Body horror

Moderate: War and Death of parent

saurahsaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

3.75

I really enjoyed this book until about 4/5 of the way through, when it delved into

the details of Jane’s magic rituals and mathematical theories.

Until that point, the book thoroughly held my interest and the pacing felt well-suited to the plot. My interest really dipped during the 80-86% part of the book, but did gradually return after that.

The ending was layered, a bit surprising, and intriguing.

It wasn’t a true happy ending, but it was mostly hopeful.

I felt that the ending redeemed the book overall. The main characters and their relationship were compelling, and I found myself really rooting for them.  I especially loved that Jane’s autism is portrayed so lovingly and as the superpower that it is. There isn’t nearly enough autism representation in literature, and the horror genre is no exception, so Jane is a breath of fresh air. (Jane’s autism is alluded to—and not directly described, but the author confirmed this fact!)

I may not revisit this book, but I’d happily read more work from this author!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Blood, Miscarriage, Gore, Body horror, Death, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Grief, Terminal illness, Self harm, Child death, Death of parent, and Drug use

Minor: Vomit, War, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Abandonment, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Classism, and Sexual content

flordemaga's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

This took me a really long time to read by no fault of the book itself, I just literally physically lost the book for like a month.

I will say: at first it felt a bit too much like Crimson Peak, which I know was intentional, but I wanted more variety. And it took a bit too long to get to the action that felt like anything.
But I like the character of Jane Lawrence herself a lot. I like that she's autistic and just is. I also really like the descriptions of the gore and medical stuff and blood. Very visceral without being excessive, self-serving, or unnecessary.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Death, Blood, and Gore

Moderate: Confinement, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, and Terminal illness

Minor: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and War

odrib's review against another edition

challenging mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Miscarriage, Murder, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Terminal illness, and Body horror

Moderate: Grief, Drug use, and Child death

Minor: War and Forced institutionalization

aardwyrm's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

The secondary world element elevates the thing and frees up the story to play with all kinds of spooky occultist stuff without any concern for history (though some of that constructed history is... questionable, and doesn't serve much purpose; everyone deciding to collectively be atheist after a world war is a jarring note that fades into the background as the story goes on). The gothic mystery and tension building and inevitable descent into chaos are all well handled, though honestly I could never care all that much about Augustine, who comes across as a tedious drip at best. Scary and tight enough to be riveting while you read it, though, and the flaws come clear only on reflection. What more can you ask?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Self harm, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Medical trauma, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Medical content, Miscarriage, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Violence, and Suicidal thoughts

laurajones's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Drug use, Self harm, Toxic relationship, and War

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Excrement, Terminal illness, and Vomit

gingerale06's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

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

3.25

I was loving it at first but then it got really weird and confusing 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Violence, and Vomit

booksthatburn's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

THE DEATH OF JANE LAWRENCE is slow burn horror of the best kind, built on bridging the gaps between wishes, nightmares, and reality with fevered applications of blood and viscera. 

The setting is technically-not-England, which frees it from being beholden to any exact combination of surgical sensibilities with historical accuracy while still conveying a particular feeling by the sum of its details. A surgeon might know the term “ectopic” while still practicing bloodletting and looking down on anyone so backward as to subscribe to miasma theory. Jane is an excellent narrator, highly reliable in how she conveys her thoughts and observations to the reader, but repeatedly stymied as she is less and less able to trust what she learns from other people. I didn’t much like Augustine as a person but he fits his role in the plot very well and is a great character. I love the plot, the pacing is excellent, a great book all around.

Its ending is immensely satisfying, fitting for the characters and in keeping with the horrors which transpire before. If you like surgical horror with magic and madness, don’t miss this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Grief, Blood, Gore, Miscarriage, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Death

Moderate: Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Self harm, Child death, and Animal death

Minor: Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, and Death of parent