Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka

49 reviews

kananineko's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

3.5

I think this book was very well written and very well done, if a little shallow. Every perspective felt necessary and added to the story, and I really enjoyed the focus on victims and women in the story of a male serial killer, but... I feel like it could've dived deeper into the themes, and honestly, not much happened. Dare I say it was a little boring and forgettable... Keep in mind that crime/thriller isn’t my usual genre (I don’t enjoy these types of books as much as other people do). However, it was still an important book. I did shed a tear in the last chapter, which is rare. I also wish Lavendar had more chapters. Overall, I'd consider it a good book, though. The writing was phenomenal as well. I'm glad this book was written but it wasn't anything out of this world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Sexual content, Grief, Abandonment, Murder, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Sexual assault, Blood, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual violence

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Racism, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Police brutality, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Incest, and Xenophobia

mementowori's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Child abuse, and Misogyny

Moderate: Animal death, Murder, and Animal cruelty

mariecaat02's review against another edition

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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Animal death, Murder, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexual content, Mental illness, Death, and Abandonment

Moderate: Violence, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Murder, Drug abuse, Addiction, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

caughtbetweenpages's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-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

4.0

I struggle a little to classify this book in terms of genre. I expected, based on the beginning and the synopsis, something of a literary fiction piece focused primarily on the internality of a serial killer and his victims (like a less pedophilic Lolita, if that makes sense?), As the story went on, though, it felt almost more like a retrospective psychological thriller or a crime drama... and instead of the genre switch throwing me off, I enjoyed it immensely. Though the story wasn't completely circular (since the narrator Ansel is both unreliable and also quite persuasive, I was convinced for a while that he

would actually manage to pull off the escape attempt and get the sympathetic guard killed or hurt in the process

) and thus the "ending" wasn't a certainty, the narrative arc still sort of took the shape of "how did he get here?" in a way I couldn't look away from. 

Kukafka did a great job, for me, of explaining without justifying Ansel's behavior and building sympathy for the abused boy he was and the person he could have become if he'd made better choices, if he'd had more opportunity early in his life to be guided toward them. At no point was I on his side, perhaps until the end where his execution is happening  and he is less the murderer he was and more just a soul ending and all the wasted potential of a life turns to nothing. His manifesto will come to naught, the hurt he has done to the families of his victims will stay (but not for his sake, for theirs), and all of the egomania and entitlement and evil in his heart just stops. This one stuck with me after I finished the book and I think it will continue to do so.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Misogyny

pun1sher's review against another edition

3.5

I wish every "true crime" fan that glorifies serial killers would read this

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Domestic abuse

snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, Suicide, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic relationship, Violence, Misogyny, and Sexual violence

guatastic's review against another edition

Intense sexual abuse and abusive relationships. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

dazzle_spider_reader_1212's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Death, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Murder, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Classism, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, Self harm, and Toxic relationship

c_serpent's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad 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? Yes

5.0

Five stars for how this novel emphasizes that the serial killer is not special, unique, or extremely evil. He is just a man, and the true loss is in the lives of the women he killed. Five stars for Izzy, Angela, Lila, Jenny, and Saffy.

Total score: 5/5 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Gore, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Stalking, Blood, Confinement, Death, and Alcoholism

Minor: Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Drug use

blacksphinx's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

One day I will finally learn that I just don't like literary novels. This was not that day.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Stalking, Grief, Murder, and Alcoholism

Minor: Racism