Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enríquez

48 reviews

gossamer_lens's review

dark mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

Overall a creepy and interesting short story collection. The below are my ratings for each short story. My rating for the book is the average of these:

3.75 - The Dirty Kid
4.25 - The Inn
2.75 - The Intoxicated Years
4.5 - Adela's Hours
5 - An Invocation of the Big-Eared Runt
3.5 - Spiderweb
4.75 - End of Term
4 - No Flesh Over Our Bones
4.25 - The Neighbot's Courtyard
3.5 - Under the Black Water
2.75 - Green Red Orange 
4.75 - Things We Lost in the Fire

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Police brutality, Gore, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Excrement, Murder, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Gun violence, Child abuse, Body horror, Animal cruelty, Self harm, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Vomit, Eating disorder, Drug use, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, and Addiction

zmeiat's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Death, Animal death, Child death, Blood, and Gore

drgnhrt968's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Body horror, Child death, Blood, Child abuse, and Death

emilyseebold's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Suicide attempt, Rape, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Mental illness, Addiction, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, Drug use, Police brutality, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Animal death, Blood, Body shaming, Cursing, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Domestic abuse, and Drug abuse

Moderate: War, Vomit, Trafficking, Xenophobia, Pedophilia, Gun violence, and Torture

Minor: Homophobia and Eating disorder

lilyane's review against another edition

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death

revjess's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Child death, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Sexism, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Police brutality, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Suicidal thoughts

aprilyvonne's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Things We Lost in the Fire” by Mariana Enríquez was another unsettling, captivating, and uniquely feminist collection of macabre short stories. I first read “The Dangers of Smoking in Bed” about two years ago and I’m still struck by the strange stories that come to mind every now and then. 

This book was truly another example of a unique reading experience. It’s always hard to put into words something so grotesque, and yet, also mesmerizing. I’m still processing the stories, but the few that stood out are Adela’s House, Under the Black Water, End of Term, and Things We Lost in the Fire. Many of the stories and characters will likely haunt for a long time. I loved how the author could incorporate such themes of poverty, police brutality, women facing off the patriarchy, alongside the darker side of humanity. 

If you enjoy the dark, creepy, and daring, then this will be for you. Otherwise, be fair warned that it’s not for the faint of heart. 

***

“Burnings are the work of men. They have always burned us. Now we are burning ourselves. But we’re not going to die; we’re going to flaunt our scars.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Blood, Murder, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Gore, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Violence, Classism, Eating disorder, Addiction, Body horror, Gaslighting, Transphobia, and Sexism

librarymouse's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

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

2.5

This was more engaging than the last of Mariana Enriquez's books that I read, but the removal of womens' agency explored, especially in the last piece, even as done through an attempt to radically assert that agency, was more unsettling than I expect. I also was not a fan of the trope of using disabilities or injuries to define people as monstrous.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Addiction, Classism, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Self harm, Abortion, Medical content, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Violence, Blood, Drug abuse, Vomit, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Suicide, and Gore

isarza's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

3.5 estrellas porque no me gustaron todos los cuentos pero en general creo que disfruté leer a esta autora. 
Mis cuentos favoritos fueron "la casa de Adela", "nada de carne sobre nosotras", "bajo el agua negra". "Bajo el agua negra" me recordó a Lovecraft y me gustó esta referencia. 
Quisiera leer "los peligros de fumar en la cama" que dicen que es aún mejor. 

Odié el final de "el patio del vecino" Trigger warning por tener escenas de maltrato animal. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Blood, and Body horror

Minor: Rape, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Torture, Excrement, Gore, Violence, Death, and Eating disorder

katievh's review

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• 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: Animal death, Drug use, Violence, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Classism, Body shaming, Police brutality, Gore, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder

Minor: Murder, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Rape, Pregnancy, and Transphobia