Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Wake, Siren: Ovid Resung by Nina MacLaughlin

30 reviews

mmccombs's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

2.0

I’m really disappointed in this one, it had all of the makings of a book I’d love. Some stories were great, but mostly it was repetitive and overwrought. All of the voices were basically the same, so it never felt like we were hearing from a cast of characters. I saw a reviewer describe this as “100 rape vignettes” and I think that’s accurate. And it was just so graphic, which I think makes it look “deep” or “meaningful” or “important” but just renders it traumatic for no real reason at all. I don’t think this was feminist and it is a cis, white perspective on gendered violence through and through. There’s a kernel of something here but I mostly just think it should have been at least half as long and much more selective in what stories to tell.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual harassment

courtneyfalling's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.0

Dark feminist retellings of the myths in Ovid's Metamorphoses? Conceptually I'm so here. But this collection was... heavy and very viscerally in the characters' voices and experiences. I have to wonder who the intended audience is because people who pick up feminist Ovid retellings probably already agree that these stories are about gendered violence and likely have experienced gendered violence themselves, but this collection feels very sharp and potentially retraumatizing to that exact set of people. Not all the time, and not in an intentionally dangerous way, but still... this was pretty hard to get through at points and I had to wonder to what end. 

Edit a few weeks later: the more I think about it, the more that the equation of sexual violence and vulnerability to cis womanhood in this book feels gender essentialist and slipping into TERFdom...

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Suicide, Torture, Blood, and Stalking

Minor: Animal death, Transphobia, Cannibalism, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Dysphoria

reallyemily's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

Wow the writing in this book is absolutely incredible. Even when I didn’t love the story being told, I loved the way that each story had a different voice and each woman had different motivations and wants and desires that could be seen through the writing. Loved. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

theinvulnerabletide's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Pregnancy

Minor: Homophobia

ellajoy12's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

littlegretty's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.25

AS a lover of Greek myth, this book felt very important to me. Maclaughlin has crafted stories and a complete narrative that changes the focus of Ovid's Metamorphoses from Ovid himself to the women whose stories he tells. Some are sweet and soft, others are dark and challenging. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Cannibalism

hunkydorky's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

alambnamedpam's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Excrement, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Pregnancy

aclaman's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Blood, Vomit, Grief, and Cannibalism

sanabanana's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

So something I loved about this book was it's origin story! It started off as a little writing exercise after a read from Ovid's Metamorphoses.
I found this compendium of sorts to be so creative! I loved how Nina McLaughlin put a spin to everything, so something as simple as switching POV's to doing a modern AU. It was always interesting to see how she would put a spin on a myth.
However... That was all I really liked :((
Some stories I really liked, like Callisto, Daphne, Arachne. Some I did not like at aaaaall. It's a no from me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence