Reviews tagging 'Cultural appropriation'

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

18 reviews

weatherd's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Slavery, Blood, Car accident, Sexism, Rape, Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Classism, Body shaming, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Cultural appropriation, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Self harm, Racial slurs, and Mental illness

ohsunnyaa's review against another edition

dark emotional funny fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Blood, and Vomit

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Cultural appropriation

kyrstin_p1989's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

A cute and creepy book about 2 teenage girls and their love for one another overpowering even the most powerful of demons. I loved that the titles of each chapter were a 80’s song title. The characters were lovable even when they were being jerks. The story, while unbelievable, was fun and lighthearted and made me think of a campy 80’s horror film. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Eating disorder, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Bullying, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, and Drug use

viccreadsbooks's review

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.5

Although I really enjoyed this book there were just a few elements that threw me off and interrupted my reading experience that kept me from giving it a full 5 star rating. The elements of friendship were really beautiful, and by the end, I was attached to Gretchen and Abby. The ending actually made me tear up - which was unexpected. The horror elements were fantastic - it read like you were watching a slasher movie (not really scary per say but entertaining). I also loved that it was set in the 80s and that all of the chapters were named after 80s music. 

What I didn't like was the elements of racism and homophobia that were thrown in - especially knowing the author is a white man. It was addressed in the book as if it was just "an element of the time" which I'm sure to some extent is true, but it felt overall unnecessary to have in the book as it didn't add to the story and every time I read about it - it took me out of the story and put a bad taste in my mouth. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Animal death, Bullying, Gore, Racism, Religious bigotry, and Vomit

Minor: Homophobia, Gun violence, Cultural appropriation, Eating disorder, Mass/school shootings, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Violence

kelldel's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Docking a point because Grady Hendrix is a coward for

not letting them kiss

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Cursing, Bullying, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Animal death, Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Blood, Domestic abuse, Body horror, Self harm, and Vomit

Moderate: Murder, Racism, Sexual violence, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Car accident, Confinement, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Torture, and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Cultural appropriation, and Homophobia

grimviolins's review

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder, Gun violence, Gore, and Drug use

Minor: Alcohol, Slavery, Mass/school shootings, Homophobia, Cultural appropriation, and Car accident

henrygravesprince's review against another edition

dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Misogyny, Animal death, Racism, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, and Bullying

Moderate: Child abuse, Abandonment, Body horror, Body shaming, Gun violence, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, Rape, and Vomit

Minor: Cultural appropriation, Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Violence, and Adult/minor relationship

deffener's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Vomit, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

Minor: Alcohol, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, and Drug use