Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

190 reviews

arbramirez's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Murder, Death, Gaslighting, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Drug use, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Xenophobia, Child abuse, and Pedophilia

Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, and Animal cruelty

aitnyre0714's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.25

I loved  Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, and somewhat expected a similar novel. However, I was slightly disappointed. Silent Patient is centered around psychoanalysis and trauma responses with death, violence, and mystery on the back burner. However, within this novel, murder, and death were the primary drivers, with some psychology secondarily. Overall, I liked the veil and academic feel of the novel but found myself confused and somewhat bored throughout the book. However, I loved the turn at the end when

Zoe and Mariana's deceased husband, Sebastian, became the masterminds. Additionally, I loved the glimpses from Sebastian's diary. My final spoiler is that I enjoyed the connection to Theo Faber within this book and how we could see the setup for Silent Patient

. Ultimately, I am glad I indulged in this novel, but it has solidified my opinion that Silent Patient is a masterpiece. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Adult/minor relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Stalking, and Child abuse

kim_reading's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

The complexities of the characters are comparable to the real world. Every character has a a complex history that impacts the way they are portrayed in the story. Part of the story from the first book written by this author are referenced as a new article, as well as, reappearance of characters that are integrated into the plot. Second Amazing read from this author, cannot wait for his new book in January 2024, will be buying asap :)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, and Child abuse

Moderate: Drug abuse and Self harm

Minor: Domestic abuse and Animal death

schausjk's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I flew through this book. The pacing was excellent, and there were so many red herrings that I wasn't 100% sure of anything until the end. That being said, a lot of the characters were a bit flat for me and I would've liked to have seen them better developed. There were also several loose ends that I really would have liked to have seen tied up in some capacity. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Murder, Drug abuse, Blood, Domestic abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Animal death, Physical abuse, Grief, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Stalking, and Self harm

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Death of parent, and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Emotional abuse, Car accident, Torture, Suicide, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Classism, and Medical content

bibliofrog's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Mental illness

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Domestic abuse

bessadams's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Grief, Blood, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Infertility, Drug use, Murder, Physical abuse, Stalking, Suicide, and Violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Domestic abuse

kshy's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

I hated the twist. It would've been more believable if

Fosca had used Zoe to carry out the murders. That way, he wouldn't necessarily have been "innocent", but he also wouldn't have been the murderer, which obviosuly couldn't have been done, as it would've been too predictable. These are the issues that arise when you reveal the "killer" on the first page. It felt sloppy that Sebastian was the one revealed to have been writing the letters, because we weren't given any hints to the fact that he was evil at all. Is it believable that someone, specifically a THERAPIST, could be married to a person for over a DECADE, and not pick up on a single sign or clue that that person was actually a psychopath and had serious psychological isssues and childhood trauma??

I felt that a lot of loose ends were left unexplained, and it felt like the entire book was built up with a ton of information (some of it unnecessary) only for the ending to take a completely opposite and hasty direction.

Henry's presence in the story was completely unnecessary, and served no purpose. The author could literally remove the entire character from the book, and it would have no impact on the plot or our understanding of the other characters.

Also, I have to add that so much of the book was completely unrealistic, specifically with the main character.

Would any sane person ever, specifically a therapist who is used to and knows the inner-workings of troubled minds, WILLINGLY GO ALONE TO DINNER AT THE HOUSE OF THE PERSON THEY SUSPECTED WAS A SERIAL KILLER?!?? It'd be fine if the main character who did this was an unsuspecting, naive individual, but a therapist?!!! Who is extensively and professionally trained on the actions of psychopaths?? Also, the fact that Mariana dismissed Henry when he showed signs of self-harm and simply left without getting him help or calling 911 is wildly unrealistic for a character who is said to be a licensed therapist.

Some things I enjoyed about the book were the author's incorporation of and connections to greek mythology. I love when a book tricks me into learning something I didn't previously know, especially when it is done in an interesting way. I also thought the book was written well, for the most part, and had an intriguing vocabulary. The psychological aspects of it and how it analyzed characters from the mind of a therapist was very interesting, specifically in that it disected the human mind and how events in a person's childhood can alter their mind and impact them for the rest of their life. For that, and for the fact that I was interested enough to keep reading and finish the book, it gets 2 stars. When I began this review, I planned to give it 4 stars, but the more I analyzed and thought about it, the more stars I deducted.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Stalking, Murder, Self harm, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Violence, Gore, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Car accident, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Abandonment, Addiction, Infidelity, and Drug use

leah_patenotte7's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Murder, and Death

Minor: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Drug abuse

cowardthedog18's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This is the first thriller book I’ve ever picked up that kept me reading and my first time using audio just to hear it during class. I’ve never felt so close and related to an older character than I to grief, love, long, and feeling of betrayal knowing nothing will never be enough nor the same ever again. Now I’ll go to my local library and hope to find The Silent Patient by Alex and hope to find more thrillers like this in the future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Classism, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Alcohol, Death of parent, Death, Drug abuse, and Grief

marieeveparentroy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Animal death, Sexual assault, Stalking, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Suicide attempt, Death, Body horror, Alcohol, Child abuse, Incest, Murder, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis