Reviews with content warning for Gaslighting - The Handmaid's Tale

Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

78 reviews

sashtastic3's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
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

4.5

A very good book. The story telling was interesting as was the dark horrific plot. The only thing that bothered me was the lack of indication of who was speaking and the lack of quotation marks in the book.

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_elli_'s review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

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sav_22's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.0

Oddly, I did not feel as strongly for this as I did the show adaptation. I feel like it wasn’t as easy to connect to the story as much. Pacing was quick and it left you feeling hollow and sad; this was likely the point, but it didn’t really have any development other than world-building. this has a nihilistic perspective, which can be more impactful for the message depending on how you go into it.

the show covers this entirely in just season 1, except a few passages here and there. The show explores this concept far more deeply and gives Offred more depth and personhood. Her real name is never mentioned in the book, as the show takes many creative liberties to explore the concept more.

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elizlizabeth's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

4.0

Very immersive, the writing style made me feel so disoriented but in a good way, as if I myself were a part of this dystopian world and couldn't know real from fantasy. It is not an action packed, heroic tale, but rather a testimony of an almost passive observer. I personally enjoyed being able to explore this kind of story from a different POV, but might not be everyone's cuppa.

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sareidle's review against another edition

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dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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annelisedreyer's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Terrifying yet captivating. A must read.

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alexandrabelze's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective fast-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

4.75

this is considered a classic in my eyes. this is technically my second time reading this book; the first time i read the handmaid’s tale was the summer before my sophomore year of high school. it definitely made an impact on me. now that i’m older, i respect atwood so much more. she truly is an amazement.

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