Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Does It Hurt? by H.D. Carlton

35 reviews

ewindtberg's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.0

This is the fourth book that I’ve read from this author and it did not disappoint. I kind of-sort of knew what the plot was going into it based on short summaries but I didn’t expect it to be what it was (in a good way). That shark scene though?! Bonkers. The ending was crazy and creepy. Did I still read it and recommend this book to friends afterwards? Most definitely lol. Check the TWs as this book is not suitable for anyone under 18.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Violence, Blood, Confinement, Cursing, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Injury/Injury detail

amanda_reads13's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.0

Sawyer is on the run and hiding in  Australia. To get by, she has been stealing people's identities. Fate throws her in to Enzo's path and bed. After realizing his identity has been stolen, Enzo sets out to track down and punish the woman responsible.

The idea behind this book was interesting to me.

Two people who hate each other get shipwrecked on an isolated island where there is nothing but a creepy old man and some noisy "ghosts".

I liked the mystery vibes to it. That said, the dark romance edge didn't really work for me and the twists were super predictable. 

First off, I didn't like either of the characters. Sawyer has a really fucked up past and is dealing with all sorts of PTSD from it. Enzo is a psychopath shark expert. There was nothing redeeming about him.

A woman steals his identity, and his reaction is that shark scene? WTF! Truly a psycho.

I just didn't care about either of them. It's a shame because with Sawyer's background, there was so much potential for readers to make an empathetic connection.

Second, both characters felt flat and there was a lack of chemistry between them. It was all about who could hurt the other more. Together they are completely chaotic and explosive (not in a good way). There was no real character development in this book. Neither were likable, nor were they really redeemed by the end.

I feel like this would have worked better as a regular thriller without the dark romance edge to it. Parts of this book just dragged so much, and they were always the dark romance parts.

Tropes' forced proximity, enemies to lovers, morally grey, one bed

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Sexual content, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Gun violence

bibliophile1775's review

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting, Death, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Incest, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Physical abuse, and Rape

bakedbeanss's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense 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

4.0

I was not expecting this book to be what it was. The thriller side of this book was amazing! There was some foreshadowing with the direction of the book but you still never expected the twist. And as toxic as Sawyer and Enzo were I really loved how their relationship turned out. They are so fiercely protective of one another and by the end you could see how much they cared for one another. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Violence, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, and Body horror

lolalastname's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

0.25

Not just bad, but also boring

Full review later

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Physical abuse, Body horror, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Ableism, Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, Grief, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Confinement, Cursing, Suicide, Abandonment, Blood, and Kidnapping

staceyb's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Violence, Bullying, Death, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Confinement, Pedophilia, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Incest, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

stitchof's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Gore, Infidelity, Police brutality, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Incest, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Cancer, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

ciarareadstoomuch's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

5.0

Definitely lots of triggers (which it makes in the beginning) and I had a hard time with some of them because I had been through similar or the same, but overall the book was so good and I loved how H.D. Carlton represented those things so well

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Death, and Domestic abuse

paperdreams's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Sexual content, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Child abuse, and Gaslighting

skyhigh_99's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

I put this book off for a while because of the shark scene that everyone was talking about, but I also read Haunt/Hunting Adeline and those books were traumatizing. However this book, while still dark, was amazing. I like how they started off as a hook up and Enzo wants to get revenge on Sawyer for stealing his identity (which seemed kinda fair). Throughout the book there are some questionable situations, but i liked that Sawyer and Enzo were overall equals. They seemed to have a mutual respect, even as enemies, and continuously would give and take power/control pretty equally. After getting stuck on the island with Sylvester, you know something is off with him and as the couple get to know him a little more the unease with them on the island grows. This book also had a ton of twists that I didn’t see coming and I couldn’t put this spicy thriller down for even a second!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Incest

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Incest, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting