Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Shallow River by H.D. Carlton

11 reviews

shedevls's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• 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

3.25

getting to watch a woman come back into her own, and acknowledge and take control of her power is always one of my favourite things

(especially when her getting revenge on those who wronged her is part of that process)

, but because of my own experiences, i really just didn't vibe with the way it all played out. there was a lot of nonsense and quite a few moments that felt more like they were there for shock value rather than having any real meaning. mako and river's bestie (whose name i am unfortunately blanking on) were the only saving graces of this story imo.

i can, however, see how this could be therapeutic in a sense for some. so read if you want, but this book doesn't make my recommendation list.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Torture, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Confinement, Rape, Gaslighting, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Drug use

vouija's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Blood, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Misogyny, Gun violence, Incest, Confinement, Murder, and Rape

mizfitzkay's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.5

This book is triggering for a rape survivor and as a person who watched a friend stay in an abusive cycle. I couldn’t tell you how frustrated I was with the MC. Almost DNF’d because she was insufferable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Incest, Drug abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Death, Drug use, Grief, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Rape, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Trafficking

Moderate: Body shaming and Confinement

Take this book in breaks. Dont read it in one go like I did.

kaylee_brown's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Gaslighting, Incest, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Gore, and Physical abuse

molly11e's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful tense medium-paced

• 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Drug use, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Cursing, Death of parent, Confinement, Kidnapping, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, and Adult/minor relationship

tanya_luvs_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Drug use, Murder, Pedophilia, Confinement, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Gore, Incest, and Infidelity

shasta2292's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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

3.0

Negative points- felt that some character interactions were unnatural. Some minor plot holes. Wanted more basdassery. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Torture, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Murder, Domestic abuse, Incest, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Rape, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Misogyny

Moderate: Gun violence, Abandonment, Blood, Confinement, and Addiction

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Drug abuse, Grief, and Pregnancy

mikasaestucasa's review against another edition

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Death, Kidnapping, Blood, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

theartistreader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Bullying, Rape, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Murder, Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Medical trauma, Confinement, Gaslighting, Incest, Torture, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Misogyny, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse

lauren_readsbooks2302's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Okay this definitely cemented Carlton as one of my favourite authors.

Don't get me wrong - this book is daaaaark. There's almost a new trigger warning on every single page, but the story was so compelling.

I thank my lucky stars often - especially when I read a book or watch a show like this - that I was surrounded by a loving family and found myself somebody amazing to share a happy, stable relationship with, so reading about domestic abuse, especially when it's in such vivid detail, is always heart breaking. Carlton really managed to capture the constant struggles domestic abuse victims face when subjected to years of belittling, gaslighting and manipulation at the hands of someone they love and someone who is meant to love them.

I did, however, feel that the Matt raping Ryan plotline was added without much substance to add some extra shock factor to the story, and considering the type of story this was and what the MC had gone through her entire life, additional shock factor wasn't needed. I understand that some people can act horrendously or treat people horrifically as a trauma response to something they endured, but people can also just be inherently bad. I don't know. It wasn't massively out of place but I sort of felt as though it was a last minute idea thrown in to try and garner some sympathy for the reader towards Ryan.

I adored Mako, but I'm starting to wonder what Carlton's obsession with sharks is. Is she a marine biologist, or just a shark lover in general? If you haven't read Does It Hurt? then you won't get this until you do. The name kind of made me snort a little when I first read it.

Oh, and the scene with River and Alison? Holy shit lmaooooo. I mean, it was kind of hot but again, came out of nowhere. 

One thing I do really like about Carlton's books is the happy endings. I feel like they're not always ensured when you're reading dark romance but I think I'm just a little sappy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Rape, Body horror, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Gore, Sexual content, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Torture