Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison

24 reviews

elizabethr00's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Violence, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

anissawren's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Medical content, Kidnapping, Confinement, Rape, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Gun violence, Grief, Suicide, Child abuse, Infidelity, Pregnancy, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Drug abuse, Terminal illness, and Vomit

vigilantiwitch's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Kidnapping, Rape, Confinement, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Murder, and Physical abuse

phoricho's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I initially rated this book 4 stars, but after a couple of months of it living rent-free in my mind, I decided to change that to a 5 star. My original rating was more due to the fact that this book left me not knowing how to feel. It was so different from anything I've ever read, both in content and layout. 

Content-wise, it's a very dark book, and the characters go through numerous traumas. It's not for everyone. Check the trigger warnings.

Layout-wise, there are no chapters. That's unique, but it works with the story. There are two parts, and the POVs are broken up by section breaks. 

Yes, it's a horrifying story, but I thought it was beautifully told, and the characters felt so real. I'm excited to read the rest of the series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Stalking, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Rape, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Self harm, Torture, Trafficking, Alcohol, Body horror, Child abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

aparker89's review

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

This book kicks off with a bang and doesn't stop! It's a super fast paced read that holds a lot in its few pages! You are immediately thrown into the middle of a horrific story and you just have to find out what happens! The final twist at the end is a little too thrown together and honestly I would have left it out, but I'm not the author. This is a great book to jump into and just enjoy! 
Note this book is a horror/thriller and while the author does "protect" us from some of it early on that shielding does disappear as the story progresses. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Rape, Sexual assault, and Slavery

Moderate: Deadnaming, Sexism, Pregnancy, Death, Drug use, Dysphoria, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Suicide, Torture, Body horror, Cursing, Self harm, Adult/minor relationship, Classism, and Fire/Fire injury

sarahcrowell's review against another edition

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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Check trigger warnings before reading. Dark concept but a great book overall.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Confinement, Death, Grief, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, and Vomit

_terah_hansen_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Physical abuse, Confinement, Death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Suicide

drs645's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Murder, Death, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide attempt, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Body horror, Torture, Suicide, and Kidnapping

lydiavsbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

A very dark book but also an incredibly gripping one. As horrible as it is its also a really interesting and creative concept that was carried out brilliantly. The 'world building' of the garden was perfectly done and it just felt so real.

 I loved our main character and hearing her narration, flipping back and forth between being in the interview room and being in the garden. The gardener was such an interesting and complex villain to follow and try to understand. Although obviously an extreme example there was some great commentary on violence against women, power, and responsibility when it comes to intervening. 

There was one point I thought it was going in a direction I really didn't like (trying to be vague to avoid spoikers) but it got explained and thankfully didn't go there. Although the reveal at the end I'm not sure how I feel about, it felt a little too coincidental and there was no real need other than for the sake of having another secret to reveal. But I also wasn't mad at it.

Overall just a really brilliant book with a really good balance between the very dark content and the almost hopeful sense of family and connection found even in the worst scenarios. Definitely recommend but definitely check content warnings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Child abuse, Death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Grief

mair_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Grief, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Violence, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture