You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Die Sturmhöhe: Roman by Emily Brontë

243 reviews

dark mysterious sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

It's the mother of books about toxic relationships. And I think it's horrible it's marked as one of the romance novels. In my opinion it's at most a dark romance and more thriller because no one seems to have any kind of romantic feelings for one another. 
And on top of that there is a lot of incest in this book, in the third generation of "lovers". I think this is one of the books that you should not publish uncomented anymore. 
But I'm very impressed, that Emily Brontë was able to publish books at that time. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark mysterious sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This is a book I was assigned to read in highschool.. and that, like every other read I was set, I quit at page 37. I resolved to one day pick it up and digest it in it's entirety. Verdict? Not very filling, a bit dry, not that satisfying. If I hadn't deliberately exerted myself, I wouldn't have bothered to finish it.

The setting is ostensibly spooky. It's a cold and desolate windblown house, with warped trees and harsh weather. The introduction sets the reader ill at ease with a new tenant imposing himself upon the landlord's household, only to meet with dour people and rude manners. Every attempt he makes to act toward them in a warm or overly familiar way is oh so cringeworthy, and disconcerting.

The narrative is told through word of mouth stories. The main narrator on the history of the characters is a maid servant, but yet further detail is fleshed out through recounting the content of letters and anecdotes of others... this method of telling stories inside stories I have seen before in things like Shelley's Frankenstein.

The Classism in this is predictably rampant. The use of a Yorkshire accent is disparaged and laughed at. Frustratingly for me, the narrator of the audiobook couldn't do the dialect any justice and she fumbled through all the parts that are written phonetically in rustic parlance. This took a lot more work for me to interpret than if it were read fluently. Gah! t'th divvel wet ye!

Another recurring theme is the whole cliché of dark and light. A dark haired, supposedly ill-bred orphan is taken to hearth and home, and of course fair haired, light eyed, pale skinned people are seen as morally superior. A bit of vanilla Racism to rub into the literature. Well.. the book is old.. but I don't have to like it.

Honestly confused at what a teacher would hope to gain from getting teens to vivisect a book like this.. the book is pale and dreary, a litany of ills and intergenerational abuse, of slow burning insidious revenge. I mean, I used to be a goth.. I've listened to Kate Bush.. this wasn't even romantic.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Do I get why this book is a classic? Obviously. But do I get why people romanticize Heathcliff and Catherine's relationship? Hell no.

Before studying this book in class (I'm doing an English major), I literally thought this was a romance novel. To be honest, it is in some weird way a romance novel, but taken to a toxic obsessed kind of love mixed with the characteristics of the Gothic novel of 19th-century Britain.

I'm really excited that I finally finished this book since I've been reading it since MAY and we're in AUGUST. However, I got lazy because from the moment Heathcliff leaves for three years until Catherine (junior) grows up a bit and starts visiting the Heights, it's all a big blur, and I didn't really care. It was a bit hard for me to get through the story, not only because English is not my first language and this was written in the 19th century, but also because classic novels tend to explain and describe completely unnecessary things and idle conversations.

Also, can we talk about how almost every character in this was completely and utterly annoying? The only character towards whom I didn't have any negative feelings was Nelly.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Holy fucking shit this nocked my socks off! The prose are phenomenal & moving. Not bad for a virgin with no friends who died at 30 from TB 5🪦

Joanne Froggatt also fucking slayed the audiobook 5🪦

NB Nelly doesn’t get paid enough to deal with all the BS from the Lintons + Earnshaws - get a better employer girl! 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Read as part of a buddy read among friends so it’s more recreational/ to mock it as a romance. But my final opinion is that its not a romance to mock because
it’s not a romance but more of a horror, the true romance is not the “main” couple, they’re the source of the horror. The true romance in this book is the end couple, I guess you could look at it as a romance that blossomed from the pure evil doings of Heathcliff but it really doesn’t feel like it’s the main point.


Personally I prefer to read books where I like or enjoy the main characters so honestly it wouldn’t be my go to pick. However once I got past that I found it was actually a really easy/ captivating read once I acknowledged (not a major plot spoiler)
that it was not a romance but more of a horror.


Despite the slow moving plot I felt compelled to finish it, at least just because I wanted to see if
Heathcliff is ever stopped
. Although I was inclined to give this a one star because I absolutely despised most of the characters, I don’t think I was supposed to like them. Honestly it’s easier to hate a character you’re supposed to hate than not liking a character you’re supposed to like.

3.5 stars because it wasn’t a bad story
just terrible people, although I will admit the rating would be lower if it didn’t have a somewhat happy ending.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Loveable characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Miserable plot, average writing, drags on more than is necessary. A classic, but not an enjoyable read

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark reflective sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings