Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb

6 reviews

sabrinalexis's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, Grief, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Body shaming, Forced institutionalization, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Addiction, Infertility, and Ableism

itsquinntendo's review

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

I have such complicated feelings about this book. It was recommended by my best friend years ago, and I just kept putting it off. I'll admit, it's well written - but I think this one just wasn't for me. I am not a fan of super character-driven novels and that's basically all this one is. I'm also not a fan of truly unlovable main characters. I understand WHY Dolores is the way she is.. I understand why she self sabotages every step of the way.. but that doesn't make it any less frustrating. As someone who can relate to a lot of her struggles, I found myself increasingly annoyed by her choices. The entire story was an ad for therapy. Add in the fact that I don't typically enjoy women written by men, and this was just a miss for me. This is very much a "reader know thyself" type moment and I wish I had set it aside instead of pushing through. I don't regret reading it, but I wish I had spent my time on a book I knew I'd enjoy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Vomit, Infidelity, Adult/minor relationship, Infertility, and Self harm

snoutsiru's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-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

3.25

CHECK CONTENT WARNINGS BEFORE READING!!! this book is so incredibly sad and so many effed up  things happen it’s unreal. I can’t tell if the commentary in this book is valuable or obnoxious.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Stalking, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Outing, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Infertility, Homophobia, Grief, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Body shaming, Bullying, Abortion, and Ableism

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, War, Vomit, Violence, and Toxic friendship

hannah_gingersnap's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Gaslighting, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

emmareadseverything's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense 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

This is my favorite book of all time. It follows the life journey of Dolores as she navigates trauma, relationships, body image, and growing up.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming

Moderate: Rape, Mental illness, Eating disorder, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Sexual harassment and Vomit

kchoike's review against another edition

dark emotional funny 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

3.5

As a mentally ill fat girl, you know I had to pick this book up. It was incredibly dark but a definite page-turner for me. It felt fairly dated in how it handled topics such as gayness, fatness, and race. I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending; I was hoping for a little more catharsis after everything the book put me through.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Infertility, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship