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Reviews tagging 'Death'
La mujer del viajero en el tiempo by Silvia Alemany, Audrey Niffenegger
64 reviews
miak2's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
"My whole life is one long déjà vu " p. 175
In all honesty, closer to a 3-star read, but I'm giving it four because the concept is so unique and really fleshed out.
I'll start with what's great about this book, which is its concept. Generally, any piece of media that involves time travel is usually pretty wonky with its rules, but this one has very rigid rules and refuses to waver from them. And it's not complicated either - he time travels, involuntarily, usually to the past but occasionally to the future. Every time he does, he arrives completely naked, no clothing, no possessions, nothing artificial. He has no ability to change events, only witness and experience them (I was going to put a time-travel reference here but, as I stated earlier, most things play it pretty loose with the rules of changing the past).
And Niffenegger is freaking ingenious with the way that Henry's time traveling impacts his life - scenarios he might end up in, the advantages and disadvantages that befall him, etc. Seriously, the concept is already creative to start with, but what she does with it is really tremendous. Major kudos.
But, unfortunately it was a unique story told around a couple that I wasn't invested in in the slightest. Neither Henry nor Clare were all that likeable, and while I'm all for an unlikeable narrator when it serves a purpose, I was meant to root for this couple and I found that I really couldn't care less about either of them. As you'd expect, I really enjoyed parts of the book that involved his time traveling, but I felt the book really dragged when it was taking place in the present (and with a 500+ page book, I'd expect every page to either be entertaining or serve a purpose because that's a big commitment). And despite its length, I thought several parts of the book were severely underdeveloped, such as Henry's relationship with Ingrid, or his meetings with Ben (which were important for all of, like, three pages, and then Ben showed up later and I was like...who's this?)
Also, Niffenegger included a lot of sex, but not in, like, a porny way, but in a "hey author, are you okay, this seems to be an unhealthy obsession that maybe you should talk to someone about" kind of way. At one point Clare was thinking about, and I quote, "the feeling of being permeated by [Henry]. p. 423. Shudders . The characters would fairly often just...I don't know, slip into thinking about (to use the words she frequently used) 'c*cks' and 'c*nts'. I wish I'd read this on an e-reader just to easily see how many time she used these words.
Like I said, without the creativity and diligent effort the author put into the time traveling aspect, this book would barely scratch three stars for me, but I enjoyed those parts so much that it really saved an otherwise slow and frustrating novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Miscarriage, and Death
Moderate: Suicide
milenalol's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I loved this book!
I’m really interested in time traveling theories and the plot of this book was really well made!
My only problem was that there was a couple of offensive things said and i found myself getting uncomfortable in some of the moments happening in this book. (mostly because of age gaps)
I’m really interested in time traveling theories and the plot of this book was really well made!
My only problem was that there was a couple of offensive things said and i found myself getting uncomfortable in some of the moments happening in this book. (mostly because of age gaps)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Violence, Sexual content, Death of parent, Death, Adult/minor relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Lesbophobia and Suicide
amberclaire's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Car accident, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, and Suicide
hettyreads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Death, Death of parent, Suicide, and Sexual content
Moderate: Rape, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, Infertility, Grief, Gore, Drug use, Cancer, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
realmenwearfloral's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Miscarriage
Minor: Suicide attempt
k8thegr8's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Grief
suzyhps's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book really threw me. When I was finished I had to give myself quite a while to feel a little less despair at the idea of an inevitable, looming future. I didn't expect to enjoy this story and plot as much as I did. I picked the book up in a little free library and I was incredibly curious as to how the author had written the time travel, as it can be done hundreds of different ways. I was not disappointed, it felt tangible and to some extent very believable. I empathized with the characters and I did cry quite a bit.
However, there were a few things that I didn't love too much. Of course time travel makes it tricky, but the relationship Henry has to Claire as she grows up made me uncomfortable at times, though I don't believe it could have been written in a way that didn't. Then, for me as someone born in the late 90s, I had to let the lists of artists, musicians, etc. kind of wash over me in order to not get lost in the lists and details. It was a bit overdone. My final gripe was that Claire seemed to have been waiting for the past 50 years for Henry to come back. This is of course not unrealistic, as most of her life had revolved around him up to that point, but it seemed to counteract the very thing Henry had hated seeing in his father. Of course, we aren't privy to what happens to Claire in the years between, but it did make me wonder if she had been allowed (by herself) to move on even a little.
So overall I would recommend this read if you are interested in time travel confusion, soulmate like romance, and what feels like a glimpse into someone else's life.
However, there were a few things that I didn't love too much. Of course time travel makes it tricky, but the relationship Henry has to Claire as she grows up made me uncomfortable at times, though I don't believe it could have been written in a way that didn't. Then, for me as someone born in the late 90s, I had to let the lists of artists, musicians, etc. kind of wash over me in order to not get lost in the lists and details. It was a bit overdone. My final gripe was that Claire seemed to have been waiting for the past 50 years for Henry to come back. This is of course not unrealistic, as most of her life had revolved around him up to that point, but it seemed to counteract the very thing Henry had hated seeing in his father. Of course, we aren't privy to what happens to Claire in the years between, but it did make me wonder if she had been allowed (by herself) to move on even a little.
So overall I would recommend this read if you are interested in time travel confusion, soulmate like romance, and what feels like a glimpse into someone else's life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism
applesaucecreachur's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
Fuck this book, fuck its author, and fuck the people who enjoy it. I had the extreme pleasure of listening to the audiobook on Libby, so not only did I hear the racially insensitive depictions of Black, Korean, and Filipina characters, but I got to hear the bullshit accents and speech patterns the readers thought appropriate for them.
To get to the meat of this extremely boring book that I listened to on 2x speed (down from 18 hours to 9), it was a tale of a time-traveling man and how he met and fell in love with his wife. Now, let me note: He was 8 years her senior when they met in the present, which is fine. However, when they began their relationship, HE WAS IN HIS FORTIES AND SHE WAS SIX. And no, there wasn’t sex or romance THEN, but it’s grooming. It’s fucking grooming. He played with her and helped her with her homework and shit. God I hate this. Oh my god.
To get to the meat of this extremely boring book that I listened to on 2x speed (down from 18 hours to 9), it was a tale of a time-traveling man and how he met and fell in love with his wife. Now, let me note: He was 8 years her senior when they met in the present, which is fine. However, when they began their relationship, HE WAS IN HIS FORTIES AND SHE WAS SIX. And no, there wasn’t sex or romance THEN, but it’s grooming. It’s fucking grooming. He played with her and helped her with her homework and shit. God I hate this. Oh my god.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Infertility, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Body horror, Infidelity, and Racism
Minor: Cursing
camillesuzannes's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Blood, Death of parent, Death, Drug use, Car accident, Confinement, and Body horror
Moderate: Sexual content, Infidelity, Hate crime, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Vomit and Cancer
onion's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Grief, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Alcoholism, Blood, Death of parent, Gun violence, Medical content, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Ableism, Cancer, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Sexism, and Violence