Reviews with content warning for Stalking - Las Virgenes Suicidas

Eugenides tactfully explores themes of voyeurism, suburban claustrophobia and banality, intimacy and loneliness, adolescence, girlhood and the male gaze, depression, self harm, repression, and memory. Depictions of suburbia are often grotesque, focusing on grimy, filmy, bug-coated imagery and rotting, stale stenches. Plot pacing is slow and character development is superb.

Overall this book left me feeling gross but intrigued. I’ll be thinking of this novel for a while.

Content Warnings

cepbreed's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-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

3.0

I think I’d be more willing to accept satire if this were written by a woman. I understand it is satirical, an exaggeration of a boys imagination but that doesn’t change the fact that this book is perverse. I can’t sugarcoat it. I am very disturbed by the male gaze and it’s effects on these poor girls. I’m very interested in the movie adaptation now thought I doubt it’s any kinder to the girls. Just by the amount of romanticization and fantasy already scattered around the internet. The adaptation is taken without any deeper thought into its meaning. I, to be honest, can’t really explain what it is either. I think my parents could learn from this book a little bit LOL. Being strict is toxic. It creates children who do everything to bend the rules and children who are deeply upset like in their core being.

Content Warnings

jaymepem's review against another edition

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challenging emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

m1a_111's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-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

3.75

Content Warnings

fflur's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Very interesting book - did have me hooked but more so out of a morbid curiosity. The narrators were incredibly creepy and gross many times throughout the book, but I did become quite attached to the five girls. It was pretty depressing, but I thought that it was incredibly interesting in the sense that most books I've read involving suicide don't focus in the effects on family members as much, which this book did.

Content Warnings

liv_morelli's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-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? It's complicated

2.5

Content Warnings

pauliinareads's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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

5.0

that hurt.

Content Warnings

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