Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

55 reviews

dr_amy_k_west's review against another edition

adventurous emotional

• 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

Not sure how to rate this one. Got the rec from a fave booktoker and not unhappy about it. I did devour it (an easier read and enjoyed the pacing and mythology). That said, I struggled in places: the plot meandered, supporting characters weren't well-developed, and was rather disappointed in the anticlimactic ending.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Child abuse, Misogyny, Torture, Bullying, Terminal illness, and Sexism

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Rape, and Sexual assault

cdoubet's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, War, Physical abuse, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Bullying and Child death

Minor: Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Stalking

ursa_arlo's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

Positives. The concept for "Lore" is fantastic; the continued ever repeating cycle of rulers dethroned by subjects and houses that hold onto cruel traditions to have a shot at killing a god... But in practice, it was a bit of a mess. I liked some of the twists, such as spoiler 

Gill being revealed to be the original Hermes (even if his motivation for taking Lore and Miles in was very unclear and he should have been reinstated as a god for his actions).

Unfortunately, this novel was too ambitious, leaving a lot of plotholes to be filled. 

Negatives. In spite of the intriguing worldbuilding, New York feels empty. If you're going to set your story in New York, write about New York! If your character has fallen in love with this city, make us fall in love with it too! 

Rather than telling a cohesive story, it felt like the characters went from side quest to side quest which made this (500+ pages!!) book loose its tension. Relevant information was also only brought up as soon as it was relevant for the plot which took away all the fun of trying to guess where the story would go next.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, Child death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Misogyny, Blood, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexism

Moderate: Chronic illness and Rape

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Animal death

pep_puterova's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

This book was really entertaining and gripping, it was definitely a fun read. I bought the book a few years ago on a whim and didn't get to it until now, which did sort of build a reluctance in me, as all books that have been sitting on my shelf for years tend to do.

 I was surprised I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected. It was a plot driven adventure with some not-so-subtle social commentary that felt a bit flat for me, but I appreciated what it was trying to do nonetheless. The premise was very interesting. It was very engaging and gripping and with so many twists and turns that really made me want to know what's going to happen next. 

If I read this as a teenager, I would have gone absolutely feral over it. As an adult, I can still appreciate it although I recognise its flaws. Imo the characters were just kinda meh; some of the plot twists were not great, but it kept me reading so I suppose serviceable; there was way too much trauma that was sometimes unnecessary, it didn't need to be that dark sometimes. I think the characters should have been aged up, I know it is YA but still, Lore has no business being 17. I suppose that's my problem with most YAs tho. 

It's classed as medium paced on storygraph, but I disagree, I found it very fast paced and I do think it can be a great pick for someone wanting a break from slower literature like myself, or a reintroduction into reading for someone who's going through a reading slump. 

TLDR; It's a page turner with a great premise, engaging plot and many plot twists, but also comes with it's flaws. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Child abuse

rinniereads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Murder, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Grief, Cancer, Cursing, Blood, and Death

nicodaa's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Death of parent, Cursing, Chronic illness, and Rape

grace_reads13's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, War, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, and Sexual assault

wishling's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cancer, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Child death, Sexual assault, Death, and Grief

aeori's review against another edition

slow-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? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Sexism, Death, Cancer, Misogyny, Death of parent, Murder, Rape, Violence, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Bullying

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

sp00324's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

3.75

I really enjoyed this story - the concept is unique though inspired and featuring Greek mythology and Gods/ Goddesses 

Very fast paced so not a boring moment however I didn't find myself especially connected to the main characters - I liked them sure and was rooting for them but I didn't feel emotional at certain points. The book has high stakes so I would have liked to feel that more 

The book definitely has some dark moments and some of the groups that feature in the story are quite backwards/ misogynistic so these were aspects our main character had to overcome. I think the book handled trauma and grief well in general especially with found family elements. 

I was left with a few questions at the end so I feel like it wrapped up maybe a little too quickly. 

Overall though I do recommend this book though do check the trigger warnings if you know that you have specific issues with certain topics. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexism and Child death

Minor: Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Bullying