Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Power by Naomi Alderman

128 reviews

cristinareading's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

3.25

First things first I want to say if you think this is a feminist book I very much disagree. This is a book about how women suddenly got the power to use electrical force and then become inhumane as a way of revenge towards men. As a feminist, this was difficult to read without getting sad. 

This book is well written but I base my star rating on how much I enjoy reading something and this was a difficult book to read. It had a very sad way of seeing the world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Drug abuse, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Sexual violence, Murder, Misogyny, Slavery, Sexism, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Violence, and Police brutality

donomak's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Torture, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Murder, Violence, and Physical abuse

amelia_rose_20's review

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

2.0

3/10 | Naomi Alderman's “The Power” was a major letdown for me. The writing felt like it was lacking a clear vision of its final form. The book’s underlying argument that “absolute power corrupts absolutely”, suggesting that women, given power, would be as (and even more) corrupt, violent and cruel as men, was disappointing and something I disagree with. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Violence, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Rape, War, Sexual assault, Torture, and Murder

penguins_save_lives's review

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, and Rape

Moderate: Medical trauma, War, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Torture, Police brutality, Murder, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Sexual harassment, and Stalking

savazelena's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes

2.0

Sigh. What?

As so many have said: good idea, bad execution. 

As far as content goes, I'm relatively okay with it. It's an interesting premise that shifts the perspective on patriarchy and gender and boy do we need those. The only thing that is missing, for me, is the question of trans characters - we have a minor intersex character and that's it? It would be a really interesting topic to explore in the context of this dystopia, so I missed it.

For the style... I thought it was just dramatic for the beginning of the story, but it doesn't. End. All throughout the book. We have these. Short. Intense. Sentences. That are sometimes deep and pseudointelectual. And sometimes. Just descriptions. To me, it's bad writing. There's no versatility, no changes in narration considering the context. 

And because of this fake deep style, the second half of the book is almost incoherent. There is a lot of political themes and complex storyline, but we never get any actual explanations, there are no motives for what the characters are doing, they are all just a cardboard cutout of an archetype. 

The letter story was interesting and I liked it. I would've liked to see more of this dynamics, as it also feels more realistic and would be harder to complicate with style.

Since Atwood is mentioned in acknowledgment, I feel comfortable comparing this to Handmaid's Tale and The Testament: books with very dystopian and VERY complex plots, seen through a few of the characters, well written and understandable, with dimensional characters. This was, in comparison, a college essay.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Murder, Sexual content, Sexism, Rape, Violence, Torture, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Child abuse

leaknezevic's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Death, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Genocide, Sexual violence, Child death, Blood, Sexism, Rape, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Torture, Stalking, Drug use, Slavery, War, Violence, Pedophilia, Murder, Misogyny, Hate crime, Gore, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Grief, Vomit, and Excrement

avkleeck's review

adventurous dark reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

Really fast paced feeling, liked the writing style. Love the commentary on power and its corruptbess regardless of gender. Desconstructing gender norms as well

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, War, and Rape

charlielizabethm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Confinement, Drug use, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Body horror, Death, War, Drug abuse, Trafficking, Violence, Sexual harassment, Transphobia, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Rape, Slavery, and Sexual violence

surelyyoujess's review

adventurous challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Genocide, Murder, Sexual assault, Confinement, Cursing, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death, Drug use, Gore, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Torture, Trafficking, Violence, and War

ljp817's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Murder, Sexual harassment, Violence, Death, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Misogyny, Trafficking, and Transphobia

Minor: Drug use, War, and Religious bigotry