Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

The Women of Troy by Pat Barker

12 reviews

katy_bee's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? No

3.75

I enjoyed this book for the start and middle but knocked a bit off my score for the end. I appreciate that by building on the Greek myths there was a limit to plot points but it felt a little lacking in clear resolution to me. 

Nevertheless I like retellings and this one engaged with the idea of what it actually means to be given as a prize of war- pretty bleak. The way the women were trying to find ways to be - and stay true to themselves- in terrible circumstances was compelling and felt well handled

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Slavery, Kidnapping, Grief, War, Sexual violence, Rape, Misogyny, and Death

Minor: Torture

historychatter's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Genocide, Gore, Sexual assault, Slavery, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Violence, and War

rosehw's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Gore, Grief, and Pregnancy

thehyacinthgirl's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, War, Confinement, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, Death, Violence, Murder, Pedophilia, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Blood, Child death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, and Vomit

meg_sc's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I finished this book in 2 days during my commutes to and from work. It had a hold on me that even travel sickness couldn't break. 

It seems like there are endless perspectives on the same story, and I'm loving reading different interpretations of the Trojan War from different points of view - even when I disagree on a character interpretation, I'm enjoying seeing new takes and how they've formed from the same source material. 

One of the things I like about this series is how it views the Trojan War from the side, using characters who are overlooked and forgotten by the main narrative. Looking forward to the next book in the series!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Violence, Trafficking, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexism, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Murder, Death of parent, Rape, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Child death, and War

alexiasophii's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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? No

4.5

Just like the previous book in this series,   please be careful of the content warnings, they are NOT a lie or minimized, this is a very heavy, graphic, and pain-ridden book. 

This one, differently from the first, is a lot slower. Just like the Greeks are stuck in Troy due to the weather, so we are stuck in a moment in time in the plot. The entire book focuses on a very short time spawn and it is very character-focused. The characters are amazingly done and I really enjoyed it, though not as much as the first one! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Pregnancy, Murder, Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Colonisation, Genocide, Grief, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Misogyny, Vomit, War, and Blood

alyssapowelltate's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

Beautifully told

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Content Warnings

Minor: Sexual violence, Rape, War, Slavery, Murder, Kidnapping, and Violence

karo_lin's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, Vomit, and War

unboxedjack's review against another edition

reflective 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? Yes

2.5

I wanted to like this given how much I enjoyed the first book, but…ugh. None of the characters were captivating nor was the plot. Moments of drama and philosophical contemplation made the book readable–especially amidst multiple uses of the r****** slur (how did THAT get past editors?)–but it has nothing to really grab me. The book had promise, but fell so short.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Slavery, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexism, Suicide, War, Child death, Confinement, and Pregnancy

lionelle's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Child death, Death, Slavery, Sexual violence, Rape, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, War, Violence, Torture, and Confinement

Minor: Body shaming and Fatphobia