Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Das Dorf der toten Seelen by Camilla Sten

9 reviews

thelovelylibrarylady's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

This is a classic example of a novel that is perfect… until it isn’t. I truly thought I was going to give The Lost Village a five-star rating until I got to the very last chapters. The characters were well-developed, the eerie setting was expertly described, but the ending was just atrocious. It actually makes me irrationally angry now that I am reflecting on the story as a whole. I do not know why the author decided to end the novel in the way she did, but it completely ruined my reading experience.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Ableism, Violence, and Mental illness

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Emotional abuse

Minor: Rape

ahixon1's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism and Abandonment

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, Death, Grief, Rape, Suicide attempt, Gore, Medical content, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit

dylpickles's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Blood, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Religious bigotry, and Violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

Brain washing

gingersnap85's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

Scared the bejeezus out of me in broad daylight. Loved it. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Emotional abuse and Sexual assault

bookishgoob's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

the atmosphere of this book was definitely chilling. there is mention of sexual assault & in another part it is hinted that a character was sexually assaulted. the ending made me feel like there should have been a bit more. it felt a little empty but it was enjoyable and creepy nonetheless 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Violence

mooniemushi's review against another edition

sad 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? It's complicated

1.0

this is the worst book ever lmao 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Abandonment, Body horror, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Violence, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Racism, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, and Mental illness

amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Physical abuse

Minor: Rape

creepycrawlybookworm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

This was a great audio read, that had me hooked quickly. There were some more predictable plot points, but others that I didn't expect too! I became more invested in the characters as the story progressed, even though not all were loveable, that isn't an issue for me particularly, as I'd rather read about flawed, interesting characters, than sugar-coated ones.
There was also a good mix of creepiness and suspense amongst the characters themselves, as well as in the town, and it worked well alongside the group dynamic and documentary parts of the story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Gore, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, and Torture

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Medical content, Blood, and Ableism

Minor: Cursing

willowy's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

3.5

The Lost Village by Camilla Sten
Length: 352 Pages
Genres: Horror and Mystery
Rating: 3.5 Stars out of 5

A special thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with an ARC of this book

"The church looms large over the small buildings on the eastern side of the village, its tall, proud spire topped by a slender cross that glistens, impossibly bright, in the light of the setting sun. The houses look almost as if they've sprouted from the church like little mushrooms, falling and moldering to form walls and silhouettes along the coppery-red river running down to the small woodland lake that village its name: silvertjärn, silver tarn."

Trigger Warnings in this book for a Suicide Attempt, Gore and Violence, Abuse of a Disabled Person, Discussions of Mental Illness, and Implied Rape

Alice Lindstedt has one goal in life - to make a successful documentary about the lost village of Silvertjärn, Sweden. Her grandmother grew up in the village, and her parents and younger sister were among the 900 people who vanished without a trace in 1959. All that was left behind was a newborn baby, and the body of Birgitta Lidman, stoned and strapped to a pole in the middle of Silvertjärn.

Alice brings Tone, a troubled friend who has her own links to Silvertjärn; Max, the backer of the project, and Emmy and Robert, who have filming experience. Emmy just so happens to also be a friend of Alice's from college that she hasn't spoken to in years and their troubled past crackles through the rest of the group like electricity. Soon, they start to experience strange things - a sighting of a figure out in the rain, strange laughter over the walkie-talkies, and a explosion that leaves them trapped and without resources as they come to the horrifying conclusion that they are most definitely not alone.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021 and I have to admit I was a little let down. I absolutely loved the setting of the spooky and remote Swedish village, with all the identically colorful little houses, looming church and creepy mines. It even contained one of my favorite tropes - the evil and seductive priest. However, I feel that The Lost Village was really let down by its writing, which came across amateurish and telling, especially in the "Then" chapters, which followed Alice's great-grandmother, Elsa. It did improve over the course of the book and I wonder how much of the problem has to do with translation, as the author is Swedish herself.

 
Another main issue I had was with the character of Birgitta. She is guessed at by Alice and the others as being Autistic, or having a "chromosomal problem", and is shunned by the majority of the villagers. Her storyline greatly disturbed me, and I could hardly read the chapter that details her death.

I think as a society, we need to move past using mental illnesses as a crutch in horror. It's not a "Gotcha!" moment, and for me, comes across as a cheap tactic to inspire shock. Alice, Tone, and Birgitta all have mental illnesses and the handling of them all seemed ham-fisted at best. While Alice and Emmy's relationship is one of the most interesting of the book, I couldn't quite bring myself to understand or forgive Emmy's actions, and I didn't especially like the way they were framed in the book, as if Alice was the one truly at fault.

Overall, I think of The Lost Village as a scary B movie - entertaining and light, nothing more, nothing less. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Violence, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Rape