Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

96 reviews

liv74's review against another edition

dark 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? No

1.0

This book struggled with major editing and refinement issues. Plot points (like

Father’s enemies Liesel or Barry O’Shea, the mysterious tentacle arm disease??

) were introduced but never developed at all. The climax of the plot is way too early, followed by a drawn-out and far too detailed resolution. It also seemed like

Father was the main antagonist to Carolyn and Steve was the main protagonist? But then with a very brief explanation David is supposedly Carolyn’s “monster to kill”

. This book definitely needed a lot more editing and reworking to achieve the highly imaginative and fantastical world Hawkins set out to write. There didn’t seem to be a limit/any kind of rules/laws (of physics, universal, societal, etc.) to

Father or Carolyn’s

capabilities. As a final criticism, I absolutely hated

Erwin

and struggled to make it through their pov chapters. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Gun violence, War, Rape, Vomit, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Animal cruelty

soupqueen's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

A very slow start. I didn’t really care about Steve’s chapters to begin with, but as the story started coming together everything started feeling more interesting. The epilogue was perhaps unnecessary, but it still felt like it added a little something to the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Child death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Animal death

jet_nebula's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Animal death, Violence, Animal cruelty, Murder, Child death, Child abuse, Death of parent, and Suicide

Moderate: Rape and Alcohol

mochikochicken's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Murder, Violence, Gun violence, War, Animal death, Body horror, Death of parent, Suicide, Car accident, Cursing, Death, Alcohol, Blood, Medical content, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury

rodiemom's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-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

3.0

Neil Gaimen meets Stephen King. This book was weird and violent. The characters were all awful, because their “father” made them that way. Lots of terrible things happen over and over, but somehow it became a redemption story. Worth reading, but not for the faint of heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, Gore, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Murder, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Torture, and Violence

rhimineecat's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

Well this might have been the weirdest and most unhinged book I ever read. In the most fucked up way you could ever possibly imagine. Suppose this one will haunt me for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, Suicide, Blood, Animal death, and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Child death

heckgoshdang's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Murder, Sexual content, Suicide, Child death, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence

poetsofsweetpea's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

This book is violent.  Torture is a feature. I did like it though.  The beginning was slow, but when it hooked me, I was interested until the end.  You have to lean into the suspension of disbelief and let go of your knowledge of science but I've granted that to lesser stories. This is a story that toys with our idea of God.  What happens if he died? It's interesting and despite the horror, unlikable characters and unbelievable science there is something almost charming about it.  The mystery keeps you engaged and then it's hope that sustains you. This book is not for everyone but most assuredly for some.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Death of parent, Addiction, Bullying, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Animal cruelty, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Genocide, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Self harm, Murder, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts

ohmage_resistance's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Body horror, War, Animal death, Violence, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, and Self harm

Moderate: Drug use, Rape, and Incest

Minor: Addiction, Cannibalism, Cancer, and Car accident

keen's review

dark mysterious sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Animal death, Murder, Body horror, Child abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Death of parent, and Sexual violence

Minor: Suicide, Vomit, Excrement, and Car accident