Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

Acts of Desperation by Megan Nolan

209 reviews

jesuspricereadsomething's review

challenging reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.75

i really enjoyed the beginning of this book. i think when people talk about their happiness in life, that happiness is linked to or exacerbated by romantic relationships; nothing was ever unrealistic about the narrator wanting to be loved and the sacrifices she was willing to make to get that. my problem with this book is that the narrator is fully aware that her mental and bodily sacrifices mean nothing and yet she continues to perform these “rituals” accommodating the person showing her the least bit of love. the second half of this books is just unimpressive and places sadness on this pedestal to be glamorized and necessary all for the feeling of being held and made warm at night. she complains about men disregarding her reality, but she disregards it as well. STAND UP! for fuck’s sake.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm and Sexual assault

seizuredreading's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I wanted to say she’s a dummy bitch & leave it be, but…

FL is complicated. Yes, it’s probable to say that her thoughts and reasoning are hard to follow, but I guess that’s the human condition at such an age, in said situations. Mind her life could’ve gotten far worse than her choices had led her. 
While this is a determining factor of DNF qualifications, I implore the few to power through. Interestingly reflective as FL comes to her own in the world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Rape, Eating disorder, Self harm, Addiction, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

nreyno's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Self harm, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

horrorandmagic's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-paced

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Eating disorder, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content

alexismoodie's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Self harm

chiara_ophelia's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Sexual assault, Rape, Self harm, and Addiction

Minor: Drug use

tmosley5's review against another edition

dark emotional tense 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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Self harm, Rape, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, and Eating disorder

xelasrecords's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad 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

5.0

You hate me, I thought sometimes, when you see me drink or cry or cut myself, but you don’t hate me in the right way. Your disgust is domesticated. I fear that your distaste is that of your average husband – not the glittering and sexual kind you used to show me when you looked down at me, before I won you.

The unnamed early twentysomething narrator goes through a turbulent relationship with a closed-off man who treats her like she's nothing and she believes him. She's naive, moony and defines her life through Ciaran; she segregates it as "before Ciaran" where everything is grey and lacking, and "after" where love explodes her life into a beautiful supernova.

If you've ever been in a relationship where you feel like you have to constantly beg for even the most meagre attention from your partner and never know where you stand on their priority list, but you can't tell anyone because you don't know how to explain it without being criticised because you still love your partner above all... watch out. This book will give you a war flashback. But read it anyway. You might feel understood by how detailed Megan Nolan writes the emotions and insecurities that aren't always easy to admit.

This book feels intimate, like I'm reading someone's diary. The feelings and the observations of them are so precise that I can resonate with them deeply. While I never went through her specific experiences, I've felt the torture of being desperate to be seen as a newly adult woman. I had to pause every few chapters to avoid overwhelming my psyche.

I definitely didn't expect it to end with a character development. I thought she'd implode or return to the status quo. It felt rewarding and relieving to see her finally care enough about herself not to debase herself for love anymore.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Emotional abuse, and Eating disorder

jadelouise_r's review

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Alcoholism, Bullying, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, and Sexual violence

twelveonine's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Self harm, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Rape

Moderate: Body shaming

Minor: Eating disorder