Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon

7 reviews

sonygaystation's review

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.75

I wasn’t quiet sure where this was going to go, even with it being a Frankenstein-inspired book. Sometimes the character actions felt a little confusing (ie. between Iris and Vi) but as it got further and further in the book I just got sad for everyone. I do wish there was a little more build up to the twist (which I did feel I started to guess pretty early on) rather than just spending time with the characters for the sake of it. I loved Eric he had my whole heart and I was sad at That One Part ™️. Also I enjoyed what was really going at the end, like give me more of that please!! It felt like a Mindy McGinnis novel there and I love her books 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Animal death, Forced institutionalization, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Medical content

Moderate: Death, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Car accident

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Murder, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Blood

librarymouse's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

This was a really enjoyable and engaging read. It was  eally well written, especially in how the storytelling explores how a story can be warped as it passes through multiple perspectives. Young Eric, Violet, and Iris are lovely and the pacing between the late 70s and late 2010s works really well. This is another one of those books, that while I know it's horror, it doesn't read as necessarily scary for me. The nuance of the characters was the driving force behind the book.

one thing that was Neve quite far enough explored was the kiss scene. I think it was meant to express Violet's impulsiveness seeping back through as she forsakes the medications she's being given and looks into what she thinks is Iris's past. That and the lure Violet feels towards Iris; the desire to know and be known. Just having that expressed through a kiss between characters referred to as sisters throughout the whole rest of the book was odd. Especially so when it was never brought up again. Violet having wished for a sister, and having that wish fulfilled is deeply unsettling, knowing their Gran had Eric keeping tabs on her and was using hypnosis on her. The ending of the book and the uncovering that Violet is patient S puts quite a lot of earlier events into perspective.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Grief, Violence, Gore, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Animal death, Physical abuse, Confinement, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail, Death, Medical trauma, Body horror, Medical content, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Car accident, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Mental illness

Moderate: Addiction and Death of parent

Minor: Gun violence, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Ableism, and Incest

Also warning for eugenics

chooper454's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, and Torture

Moderate: Murder, Death, and Physical abuse

Minor: Kidnapping and Death of parent

espressoreader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book throws the unexpected at a person.  It takes eugenics, an aspect of the world past, and likely present, which Americans like to pretend didn’t happen in the USA, and puts it in your face from the perspective of kids.  I was surprised multiple times in this book.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Kidnapping, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Classism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Murder, Torture, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Stalking

Minor: Sexual content

nrogers_1030's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Torture, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Body horror, Child abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Pregnancy, Addiction, and Alcoholism

kierstm's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Medical content, Classism, Torture, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Hate crime

onemorepagecrew's review against another edition

mysterious 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

3.5

The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon was firmly in the liked, not loved category for me, BUT I will say the twist absolutely got me.  I binge thrillers so it’s tough to be really surprised by a plausible twist and this one truly threw me. 

 

In this novel, the reader switches between 1978 at a mental health treatment center and 2019 following a podcaster who tracks monsters (Loch Ness, bigfoot, etc.).  In both timelines we get to know siblings, Vi and Eric, and a girl who grew up with them at the treatment center, Iris.  

In 2019, girls are being abducted from their families and the podcaster, Lizzy, is following her hunch that the kids from the treatment center have something to do with it.  From there, it’s a dual mystery of solving what happened at the treatment center long ago and what is happening to the girls in present day.  

 

If you enjoy thrillers, this is worth reading.  The suspense is consistent throughout and, as I mentioned, the twist was good.  For me, what kept this from being a book I loved was the very end (DM me if you read this!) and eugenics – it’s just not for me. 

 

Content warnings: Eugenics, Medical trauma, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Ableism 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, and Ableism