Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

6 reviews

cdoubet's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Misogyny, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual harassment, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Body horror, Body shaming, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Torture, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Minor: Death and Fire/Fire injury

coymeld's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Bullying, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Torture, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Rape, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Gaslighting, Eating disorder, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

notsobinaryart's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Classism, Medical trauma, Bullying, Gaslighting, Medical content, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Violence, Death, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, and Fatphobia

Moderate: Sexual assault, Body horror, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, and Outing

thenovelbookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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

4.25

Camellia and her sisters are born to make and create beauty in others. So when she is asked to obey and do as she is told, she finds not everything and everyone is as they seem.
  
The Belles is an epic fantasy adventure that I found hard to start, but as the story picked up pace, I could not put down or stop reading.
  
The character development is very deep and thorough, the storyline plays on our vanity as humans and asks how far will we go to be beautiful.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Gaslighting, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Sexual harassment, and Toxic friendship

dustghosts's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

+ An engaging, mysterious, thrilling read that feels just right for the age the series is geared towards
+ Through the narrator and her sisters’ POV, a refreshing celebration of diverse forms and interpretations of beauty 
+ Representation/inclusion that feels natural and casual, only occasionally heavy-handed
+ Visceral and gripping descriptions, dialogue that feels True, a protag who is naive, charming, and morally challenged time and again.

- Pacing can be a bit strange— slow and meandering at the beginning, too fast near the end. Some of the protagonists largest concerns feel underaddressed as a result, and some situations (ie: her being

sent to the tea house at the beginning

) begin to feel too convenient to the plot progression.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Animal cruelty, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent, Body shaming, Torture, Toxic friendship, Murder, Physical abuse, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Minor: Fatphobia

lagiven's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.0

The prose of this book is the best part because it creates the perfect atmosphere for its world and parallels the obscene opulence that centers the Belles. At times, the writing is juxtaposed against horrifying scenes that make this book so fascinating and so disturbing. Most of the characters are solid although some are flatter, and the plot really picks up in the last third of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Body shaming

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Slavery