Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara

8 reviews

nils_0's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse

partybonus's review

challenging sad medium-paced

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

I do notttt recommend! It is a trigger warning minefield and full of really wretched moments. The lush rainforest backdrop and descriptions of the scenery belong in a travel guide which is what I think this writer was before they became a writer. I wish I hadn’t read it. It haunted me and I am not interested in shockingly violent and horrendous situations in books anymore, especially when there is zero reason for it. Stay away! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Classism, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Rape, Trafficking, Animal death, Colonisation, Incest, Body horror, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Xenophobia

justagirl22's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-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

4.0

4 stars because Hanya is such a great story teller and reading her books pushes my boundaries. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Violence, Physical abuse, Animal death, and Toxic relationship

Content warning & light spoiler: Toxic relationship - described near the end of the book, physics abuse. Violence - towards animals in terms of hunting and (now deemed) unethical science practices. Rape & Adult/minor relationships Pages 212 - (onward, sporadically) allusions, not specifically stated, of gang rape

*ritual of U’ivuan culture to initial a young boy to sex, all men in the tribe older than the boy would penetrate the boy to “show him how to have sex”.

Pages 461-467 “post script” details sexual assault on a minor (this is the end of the book, easy to skip this section)

lucykateburns's review

dark mysterious reflective slow-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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Rape, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexism, and Cultural appropriation

orlagal's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Animal death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Child abuse, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Medical content, Misogyny, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Death, Excrement, Fatphobia, Suicide, Death of parent, Grief, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Gaslighting, Violence, Vomit, and Xenophobia

hanstin's review

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Trafficking, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Animal death, Child abuse, Torture, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Sexism, Racism, and Colonisation

jennifercrowe's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.25

This is the worst book I've ever read.  This book would get negative stars from me if that was possible.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Fatphobia, and Rape

burnt_amber89's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

It is hard to say that I loved this book, but I think I did, in a twisted kind of way. At least, I loved to hate it. It took a while to get into the story and even when it gets really good, the book feels long. The first 100 or so pages failed to impress me, but it gets much better later on so hang tight ! At the beginning, we get to follow the main character in his youth. He is particularly unlikable, most situations are rather dull and don't seem to bring anything. Be prepared for some graphic and disturbing descriptions of animal abuse and death, several times throughout the book. 
When the character starts his adventure on the island, however, even through I still found him insufferable (and misogynistic), I thought that the prose and the world-building were absolutely gorgeous, albeit still sprinkled with some graphic details here and there, that sometimes seem a little gratuitous. I loved following their adventures, had gotten really attached to the "dreamers", and could really visualize every plant, flower, creature, character... that the author imagined.
The last part of the novel is enthralling, I really felt strongly simultaneously for and against Vi, and continued to detest Perina, while also understanding, somehow, where he comes from. 
Hanya Yanagihara really has a knack for describing the most dreadful things in a beautiful way that brings out so much emotion in the reader.
I initially thought that the numerous footnotes would be a hassle to read and I thought I would skip them, but I ended up usually really enjoying them. It turned out to be an effective way of adding content and context, even though skipping then probably wouldn't alter the experience either. 
Overall, this is a very unique experience that I would not recommend to anybody, but if you like being challenged, if you want something both unpleasant and gorgeous and if you are ready to tackle the numerous, numerous trigger warnings, then you should probably give it a try. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Biphobia, Blood, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Deadnaming, Death, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, and Suicide

Minor: Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Murder, Stalking, and Trafficking