Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The One by John Marrs

22 reviews

thequiltyreader's review against another edition

challenging hopeful tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Another near future page turner by John Marrs. There were a lot of characters which worried me at the start, but they each formed part of their own little story and didn't cross over so was easy enough to follow. Basically a book following a number of independent situations all stemming from the same start point of this dating app. Fun quick read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Blood, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, and Toxic friendship

outofthepinksky's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Pregnancy, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Chronic illness, Stalking, Cancer, Infertility, Kidnapping, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Blood, Emotional abuse, and Miscarriage

Minor: Gaslighting, Infidelity, Sexual content, Abortion, Gore, Vomit, Animal death, and Fire/Fire injury

lor_nia's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad fast-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? N/A

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Violence, Blood, Terminal illness, and Cancer

Moderate: Grief, Alcohol, and Misogyny

Minor: Sexual content

sarah_amy's review against another edition

mysterious 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? Yes

4.75

Really enjoyed listening to this one. Narrated by a great cast of voice actors that made up the 6 characters featured in this book. It gave very 'Black Mirror' vibes of a future that feels not too far off with technological and genetic advancements not too far-fetched. Loved how it showed the different moral and safety predicaments that genetically-matched coupling could bring. I was drawn in by all the characters, who were both charismatic and incredibly flawed, which made it difficult to know how to feel about them, making them more human. If any flaw, a couple of the endings felt a little rushed. I devoured all 11 hours of this in 2 days. Looking forward to rereading The Passengers next, now that I know it's somewhat part of a series (though both books serve well as stand-alones!).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Child death, Forced institutionalization, and Death

Minor: Abandonment, Death of parent, Infertility, Body shaming, Ableism, Homophobia, Infidelity, Car accident, and Torture

amiegold's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective 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

5.0

I was pleasantly surprised by the emphasis on science in this science fiction.  I found myself questioning: What is love?  Is it chemical?  Social?  Psychological?  A case study of several different genetically matched couples plays out the complexities of this question in a shocking, yet human way.  It made me feel all the different emotions.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual content

cayleybp's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Death, Sexual content, and Cancer

Minor: Child death

taleofabibliophile's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Murder, Gore, Violence, Blood, Death, Body horror, Terminal illness, Cancer, Pregnancy, Kidnapping, and Infidelity

Moderate: Sexual content, Alcohol, and Miscarriage

Minor: Fatphobia, Sexism, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Animal death, Death of parent, and Cursing

opplecopter's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-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

5.0

Imagine if finding your most compatible partner was as simple as mailing off a saliva sample and getting the results emailed to you. Dating would be unnecessary. Going through the awkward phases of getting to know someone or stumbling over your words would be cast aside completely. You wouldn’t have to worry about second guessing anything because on a genetic level, you would have the person who is best suited for you. No other person could ever connect or love you as deeply as your Match could. Not only would this person be your Match, but they would be “the one.” The only other person in the entire world that is perfect for you. Sounds crazy but also kind of intriguing, right? 

Let me start off by saying this whole concept is creepy in itself because I can completely see this, along with the absolute chaos that ensues, being a possibility in the future. This is a modern day Twilight Zone tale or I suppose Black Mirror would be a better fitting comparison. We’ve got some psychological thriller/suspense with a dash of sci-fi thrown in. The story follows five people who have been “Matched.” Mandy, a divorcée who just wants to find love after heartbreak, Jade, who is angry and disappointed in her life as a whole, Nick, a man who is planning a wedding with his fiancée, Ellie, a woman of wealth and power, and Christopher, who is a serial killer (not a spoiler, you find this out immediately when he is introduced). 

We cycle back and forth between the lives of each of these people, so if you prefer a book with one straightforward storyline and don’t like jumping around, then you probably won’t enjoy this. The chapters are numerous, but very short since each one focuses on one of the five people. Personally, I enjoy the short chapters, some of which are only 2-3 pages, because it helps me remember everything still going on with the other characters. I feel like if they were longer, I would’ve been constantly flipping back to reread so I could keep up. I will be honest and say a couple of the storylines started out boring while a couple seemed to grab my attention much sooner (like Christopher’s), but they all deepen and get better as you go on. Starting off, we get to know their lives and backgrounds before we watch their worlds get shaken up and flipped upside down. There were so many layers, twists, lies, secrets, and betrayals. The ending was so unexpected and changed the entire atmosphere of the book and made you question everything. 

I’ve been looking for another 5 star for months, and every time I thought I found one, I was disappointed. I have zero complaints on this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Torture, Murder, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Sexual content, Alcohol, Medical content, and Cursing

Minor: Pedophilia, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt

stephanieluxton's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

I loved this book.

It's basically 5 books in one as it rotates through five unrelated main characters and their experience with "the one". 
There's a lot of little twists and turns and I found myself genuinely not knowing what was going to happen, which is rare and exciting.

The concept felt original, the pace was excellent, the characters all unique and colourful. The concept was well explored and it gives you something to think about. This would make a fantastic book club book. 

It's both dark and wholesome.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Mental illness, Death, Stalking, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Sexual content and Cancer

One of the main characters is a serial killer whostalks and targets young women and kills them with a cheese wire. It's not too graphic but it's a thing.

leebeeloves's review against another edition

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Infertility, Gore, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical trauma, Medical content, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, and Torture

Moderate: Bullying, Dementia, Rape, Violence, Fatphobia, Infertility, Child death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Cancer, Body shaming, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual content