Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Vita Nostra by Marina Dyachenko, Sergey Dyachenko

11 reviews

libellumartinae's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Alright, they got me.

I love Eastern Europe fantasy because it has such an unhinged and folkloristic vibe to it and it represented it down to a t and although I still don't know what truly this book was about (but I can wholly appreciate the beauty of the whole world-building and magic system) I can't help but ugh... absolutely love the journey that it brought me through.

A few problematic: the characters aside the mc were quite forgettable, the parts not being divided in chapters were a tad too much at points and finally the mc constantly being called out for being the best was just ugh a tad too much.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic friendship

meganpbell's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Dark academia—but make it Eastern European! Welcome to the Institute of Special Technologies…Now enrolling fans of mysterious schools, linguistic magic systems, dark and ambitious speculative fiction, and over-achieving female main characters. This is one of the few English translations of the work of award-winning Ukrainian masters of science fiction, Marina and Sergey Dyachenko, championed in the U.S. by The Magicians author Lev Grossman. If brutal academies and arcane systems of magic speak to you, this is required reading!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Ableism, Vomit, Sexual content, and Suicide attempt

aileron's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

Moderate: Ableism

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Rape, and Suicide attempt

inlibrisveritas's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Body horror, and Suicide

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Sexual content

thesawyerbean's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark 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

4.75

How do I even begin to describe this book? I am sitting here trying to digest what I just read, awe-struck, troubled, befuddled.

This was more an experience than a book - you were drip-fed the tiniest morsels of information, learning as much as the protagonist Sasha did at each moment, never being explicitly explained the concepts and yet finding yourself enthralled and cognisant within them later on. You grasp and plead for meaning concurrently with Sasha, and unfurl another dimension of complexity yearning to be discovered.

This book was brimming with magic, dark fantasy, science, philosophy and metaphysical themes. I do not think I am intellectual enough to actually fully understand this novel, but it was certainly a delight to try. In parts I was very confused and had to reread whole sections, but honestly it kind of added to the atmosphere. Fans of dark academia like me would appreciate this read.

There are words that are simply trash, refuse, they turn into nothing immediately after they are spoken. Others throw shadows, hideous and pathetic, and sometimes gorgeous and powerful, capable of saving a dying soul.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Cursing, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Forced institutionalization, and Injury/Injury detail

mandkips's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Body horror, and Vomit

Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Death

Minor: Sexual content, Ableism, and Sexual assault

solouncapitulomas's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense 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

4.25

“What a depressing way to go through life, hoping for ideas.” 

I am still not sure about the rating but wow, this book was an experience

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Body horror, and Vomit

Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Death

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Ableism

mmirjamm's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, and Ableism

cynicalraven's review against another edition

dark mysterious

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The end was the biggest mind blowing (in an almost literal sense) and I loved every second of it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit

Moderate: Sexual assault and Toxic friendship

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

luckykosmos's review against another edition

challenging 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

5.0

I can barely explain what happened in this book, but I was entranced and continually compelled to come back for more. There are so many moving pieces, but many of them seem to remain in stasis until the end, when everything clicks together for a beautiful existential crescendo. I rarely find a book like this, certainly not in the sphere of Magic School Lit, and I suspect it'll be a long time before I find another.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Vomit and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Child death and Gore