Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

161 reviews

potion96's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault

Moderate: Domestic abuse

stephmcoakley's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Cursing, Toxic friendship, Body shaming, Cultural appropriation, Racism, Religious bigotry, Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Grief, Infidelity, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Stalking

pamxramirez's review

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

i found the first half quite difficult to read, but once I understood the author's intentions (and noticed the bookis in the Fleabag genre), everything settled into place. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, Racism, Racial slurs, Misogyny, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Self harm

Minor: Toxic friendship, Miscarriage, Classism, Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Alcoholism

pghtaylorsversion's review

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? Yes

4.0

This took me a while to get into in hard copy, but I loved the audiobook and finished it in a day once I switched formats. The narrator is excellent, and the book touches on a lot of really important topics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Body shaming, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Miscarriage, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

clarice_flora's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

a hard hitting, special kind of book. normal and yet sparkling with wisdom.  eye opening, healing, comedic and sad - truly a must read 

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Content Warnings

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

applesaucecreachur's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Yep, this one was a winner. 
I checked Queenie out thanks to a bookstagram account that claimed the audiobook version was a masterpiece. Niether the author, Candice Carty-Williams, nor the narrator, Shvorne Marks, disappointed. Non-speculative contemporary fiction isn't usually my vibe but the voice acting, humor, tragedy, and occasionally even the joy covered in this story lead me to devour the book in four days flat. The titular Queenie is a deeply flawed woman who makes questionable decisions and has skewed priorities. She is also a woman who's been forced to rise to the occasion time and again, and is physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted by it all. For every misstep Queenie makes, it is ten times more frustrating to watch the world respond to her mere existence.

Spoiler

The pool scene was one of the rawest and most devastating bits of fiction I've consumed in years. It gave a voice to how one person's, particularly one white woman's, casual action can crumble another human.

Also, Shvorne Marks? Talented. Her range of accents and unique voices for each character elevates this book even further. Queenie was everything I didn't know I needed from fiction. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, Racism, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Violence and Toxic friendship

Minor: Fatphobia

megold12's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This was a solid portrayal of going through crisis while still trying to hold onto your life. I would have liked to see more change at the end, or addressing the trauma in her past. But overall it was well done, and struggling even after “getting better” is an important piece of the process

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racism, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Mental illness

Minor: Suicide

pickupthebook's review

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

I was not expecting this book to be as heavy as it was - I thought it would be just another fun read about a twenty-something woman finding herself. But the book even starts off heavy, where in the first chapter we find out Queenie is experiencing a miscarriage while going through a break-up with her long-term partner, and she feels like she has no one to talk to. From there, she starts to spiral and eventually hits rock bottom. This book dealt with everything from mental health disorders, abusive relationships, and racism, and I thought the author handled these topics with care (please check content warnings for yourself before reading though, because these topics are all discussed in depth and explicitly!). Despite some of the poor decisions Queenie makes, you can’t help but empathize with her and root for her! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Racism, and Miscarriage

martamae77's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, and Toxic friendship

zoerobo's review

dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This book was way darker than I was expecting and I think some of the plot points were a bit underdeveloped like Queenie's background. It didn't bowl me over but wasn't awful either. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse