Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Dracula by Bram Stoker

5 reviews

riverofhorton's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful inspiring mysterious sad 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? No

4.0

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The world-building was incredible, and all but one of the main group were fully fleshed out characters. The only things that let it down were poo Quincey, the language of Van Helsing being a slog to get through, and the repetition of a lot of the bits of lore. Four times we're told that Dracula can't cross running water, three times that killing Dracula will stop the transformation of any vampires that are somewhere between human and vampire, three times we're told that communion wafers act as a talisman against the vampires, plus a few others that I could mention. I wonder how long this book would be without these instances of repetition. I particularly enjoyed reading the letters between Mina and Lucy, and their respective journal entries about the other: Mina is definitely gay for Lucy, and I can see no other explanation for the way she talks of and to Lucy. I would like to have seen some more expression of that love, but I get that wasn't really possible when this was published, sadly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal death, Body shaming, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Blood, Cannibalism, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Genocide, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, War, Pregnancy, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Body horror, Drug use, Gore, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, and Terminal illness

decepticons's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Emotional abuse, War, Blood, Gore, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Body horror, Death, Gaslighting, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Mental illness, Medical content, and Stalking

Minor: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Child abuse, and Classism

Vampirism used to excuse racism

“My dear Mina, why are men so noble when we women are so little worthy of them?” says enough about the book really

mattiedancer's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense 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

3.75

Writing: 4⭐️/5 

While Stoker is a fantastic writer (the book is a classic for a reason), so much attention was given to the smallest details that the book dragged in portions where it didn’t need to. I thoroughly believe this is a situation in which the prominent style has changed so much over the years that it’s hard to appreciate the detail without feeling it’s too much and unnecessary. That being said when the writing hit, it hit strong and fast, making it an overall well-written read. 

Characters: 4.5⭐️/5

I did enjoy the development of the characters. While the women, though interesting, were reduced in many ways to trope-like behaviours, the characters did feel alive and vibrant during the tale. In many moments, I appreciated the attention to detail for each character, as well as the uniqueness provided by their own voice, which always came through in the writing.

Plot: 4⭐️/5 

**SPOILERS HERE**

It’s the tale of Dracula – the original vampire. And yet, during the climax of the story, I felt disappointed in how little attention was given to his death. I felt the story dragged so much in sections that the plot suffered, the events pulled too far apart to keep enough tension present – or as much tension as I wanted. That being said, the story was still entertaining and intriguing, just long-winded and slow-paced.

Who Should Read This Book? 

• Fans of classic fiction and gothic literature
• Those looking to appreciate a slow read

Content Warnings? 

• Misogyny, sexism, classism, death of a parent, death, illness, toxic relationships, blood, gore, death of a child, murder

Post-Reading Rating:  3⭐️/5

I felt let down by the ending, personally, even if it did wrap things up relatively nicely.

Final Rating: 3.75⭐️/5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Sexism, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Death of parent, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Animal death, and Child death

catearedwriter's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative tense 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical content, Sexism, Stalking, and Toxic relationship

waterisntreal's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Child death, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Violence