Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Una corte de rosas y espinas by Sarah J. Maas

277 reviews

laurenw589's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Some of the themes were uncomfortable but dealt with sensitively 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Body horror, Death, Sexual assault, Torture, and Murder

sandramarinis's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I truly didn't want to like this book, but I did. In fact, I was never bored. I was entertained, especially towards the end where it truly felt like I was watching a movie. 

I was judgemental because it was recommended on booktok and also because I find magical creatures titled "High Fae" a bit tacky. But I managed to look past that, so that's something. 

Positives:
The detail! The world building! I managed to imagine how everything/everyone looks. Things that happened early in the book will suddenly be mentioned in chapters waaay later, and still be relevant to the story. Being able to bring everything together like that shows true talent. 

Negatives:
There were certainly things I didn't like, but I almost don't care. For instance it wasn't necessarily logical how fast Feyre got over deeply traumatic things. Everything she lived through would've given her severe PTSD, and yet she seems to get over it in three pages every time something bad happens. I don't believe for a minute that

a woman would ever fall in love with someone who basically held them hostage and stole them away from their family, ESPECIALLY AFTER SHE FINDS OUT THAT HE HAS KILLED SO MANY WOMEN BEFORE HER TRYING TO SAVE HIS OWN ASS, LIKE WTF?! I can't tell you a single fact about who Tamlin is, what he likes and dislikes and stuff. He seems mediocre to me, but oh well. I was still entertained. Idk about you but that's not love, that's called delusion and desperation I hope Tamlin gets more interesting or that Feyre gets a new and more charming love interest

. Another thing that bothered me was that

SHE KILLED INNOCENT PEOPLE, WAS INVOLUNTARY GIVEN ETERNAL LIFE, and she forgot about that the moment sex with Tamlin was an option? Girl! Same thing after the confinement and torture at the party, like ... I don't believe that's realistic, but I guess people cope in different ways!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Infidelity, Rape, and Dementia

Minor: Gaslighting

sweetheart_ok's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

Fresh Fae Adventure and Danger

I finally got to A Court of Thorns and Roses in my TBR pile, and it honored the hype. This is my first book by Sarah J. Maas, and she didn't disappoint. I had read the synopsis to my high school students over the years, so I was excited about the fantasy aspect plus learning more about the fae world, which I have limited experience with to date. 

The story follows Feyre (Fay-ruh) as she struggles to survive in the human during a harsh winter with an unappreciative family who seems more of a burden than a blessing. Feyre makes the life-altering decision to kill one of the hated fae, and the consequences are more than she bargains for. She is forced to live with the fae forever, dragged there by Tamlin, a High Fae and lord of one of the courts. What follows is a look into this unknown world and the dangers it poses. As she gets used to living there for the rest of her life, Feyre begins to realize there is more the place than she originally thought. She also begins to realize that this world is in trouble from a ruthless enemy, and she may just the human to help them, if she can get past her bias to trust Tamlin. 

 Maas does a great job of depicting character complexities and developing relationships. She illustrates the fae world and exposes the readers to the nuances of this fantasy world. The action peppers in throughout the plot to create senses of dangers and novelty. The plot is exciting and satisfying with a diverse cast of characters. The activities under the mountain, and particularly the spectacular climax, are by far my favorite moments of the story. I chuckled at the witty banter, commiserated with Feyre's misery, cheered her on during the dangerous parts, and shook my fist at  her enemies with venom in my veins. 

What didn't work for me was the tight-lipped approach of Tamlin and his court. I have a hard time believing that this type of behavior would inspire trust in a guest. I also noticed that Feyre's development is murky and sometimes far-fetched. Having Feyre work through some of her personal growth in a more detailed, step-by-step manner may have helped us understand some of her choices. 

Romantasy lovers must add ACOTAR to your TBR pile - you won't be disappointed. Fair warning that it contains some smut, though the level in this book is probably a 3 out of 10. If you like fantasy, action, adventure, strong female leads, and romance, give it a shot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Minor: Animal death and Abandonment

3ternallymoon'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? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual content, Vomit, Medical content, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Classism

stomachpains's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious sad fast-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, Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, and Abandonment

Moderate: Animal death, Sexual content, Torture, War, and Classism

thefantasygirlie_2420's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

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

4.25

When I finished this book, it was a 5-star rating. But now looking back I changed my rating to 4.25 stars. I disliked how Tamlin did absolutely nothing while Rhysand helped Feyre no matter what.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Body horror, Gore, and Blood

jenniraptor's review against another edition

adventurous dark relaxing tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Blood

Moderate: Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Murder, and War

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail

kds247's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? Yes

3.75

Alright, I’ll give it to the ACOTAR girlies and admit that this was entertaining. I mainly liked the supporting characters over the protagonist, but sometimes their voices blended together. Hopefully throughout the series as each of them develop they’ll become more fleshed out as individuals. The beginning was ROUGH in terms of writing style and dialogue (so much so I genuinely thought she was making fun of the YA fantasy genre), but the further I got the more the dialogue and pacing evened out. Liked it better than Fourth Wing though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty and Death of parent

megoreo's review against another edition

Too damn dark. Plot fell flat. Not my thing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Gore

notmeganbenson's review against another edition

adventurous 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

3.75

The audiobook I listened to was kind of horrible, so that influenced my opinion quite a bit lol. I did recommend this book after finishing it simply because the climax is INCREDIBLE. The villain is one of the move evil ones I’ve ever read honestly and she’s so well-written. The main characters aren’t very likable at all lol

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror

Minor: Sexual content