Reviews tagging 'Rape'

The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez

87 reviews

solliereads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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

5.0

This was genuinely the most interestingly written collection of short stories that I've ever read. Enríquez has a way of writing that reminds me specifically of the saying about not being able to look away from a car crash - I felt equally mesmerized and disturbed, unable to put the book down.

My favourites/standouts were - as seems to be popular from the reviews - Kids Who Come Back, as well as Meat, The Lookout Tower and Where Are You, Dear Heart?

I would strongly recommend checking out the warnings other reviewers have included for this book, as I likely haven't included all of them, but I would absolutely recommend adding this book to your to-read pile if you're interested in dark horror with twist endings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicide, Blood, and Child death

Moderate: Alcohol, Gore, Rape, Transphobia, and Cannibalism

lizziea229's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Body horror, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Death, Drug abuse, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Child death, Cursing, Mental illness, Addiction, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

mmcur's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Violence, Self harm, Suicide, Mental illness, Child death, Sexual content, and Addiction

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Chronic illness, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Drug abuse, Animal cruelty, and Drug use

sina4books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Excrement, Gun violence, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Child death, Death, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Violence, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual content, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Body horror, Chronic illness, and Blood

ava_lanche's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

Twelve eerie stories that thrive in the mysteries they create! These mysteries are not meant to be solved, only experienced through the eyes of different Argentine women whose voices have been quieted, either by shame and insanity or by the ever-present fear of it.

Hailing from impoverished slums, trafficked children haunt the streets; raped and murdered girls reappear in silence; mothers curse their daughters; girls are possessed and scarred yet no one believes them. Crushed rib cages and torn entrails – anatomical obsessions turn bloody. Here, what is not said is the most powerful.

As with most collections of stories, some pieces are stronger than others. Many of these stories feel a little... unfinished. Some endings are unsatisfactory, which is such a shame, as most of the premises are unusually creative and thought-provoking.

However, "The Well", "Where Are You, Dear Heart?" and "Rambla Triste" were definite highlights. I also liked "The Cart" and "The Kids Who Come Back".

The stories work well together, and create a Buenos Aires that is filled with danger – physical, mental and paranormal. The poisons of the city has taken on a ghostly shape, and the repercussions are felt mostly by the women, whether it's their bodies or their minds that are marked by violence, and whether the sins are committed by people or by ghosts.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Self harm, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Rape, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Body horror, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Child death, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Murder, Medical trauma, Death, Alcoholism, Trafficking, Suicide, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Violence, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Gore, and Excrement

kjboldon's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

4.25

Enter at your own risk: rape, violence, cannibalism, self harm, suicide, use of transphobic slurs by a character and a whole bunch else. This book is bonkers, horrifying on purpose, and not for the faint of heart. But wow was it a ride. Dark AF. I was reading along and feeling like I was doing OK even though horror isn't usually my jam, then I got to the story on heartbeats.Whoa. So, there's lots of landmines and triggers here. Take care of yourself as you read this and if something upsets you, skip to the next story or put it down. But reading to the end gets you a fabulous story about teen girls and a Ouija board. This is scary, spooky AF, and part of that is the way the supernatural and the everyday horrors overlap and bleed into one another. I think Mary Shelley and Shirley Jackson and Patricia Highsmith would all be proud that this work stands on their (and many others') shoulders. Did you enjoy Carmen Maria Machado's Her Body and Other Parties? This reminded me of that, but even more so. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Transphobia, Blood, Death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Self harm, Pedophilia, Vomit, and Trafficking

snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition

dark informative 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Suicide attempt, Excrement, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Addiction, Animal cruelty, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

epistemoca's review against another edition

dark reflective fast-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Rape, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Blood

elchivovivo's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

Terror cotidiano, cercano, femenino, latinoamericano.

Refrescan las voces así: que pareciera que sólo escriben. Que sólo te cuentan.

Mariana crea un imaginario gore entregado de forma tan lacónica y deadpan que resulta, de cierta manera, chistoso.

El horror entra entre risas.

Favoritos:

Spoiler

El desentierro de la angelita.

Pone el tono. Un bebe zombie, deshaciéndose, pudriéndose frente a su pariente, que simplemente la saca a pasear. Los mejores cuentos serán así: terror que ocurre y que no inmuta a las protagonistas, que no supera el terror exiatencial.

El algibe

Terror enserio. Similar a un malviaje de ácido en el que crees que ya te quedaste loco y que ves a la cara el abismo de la aniquilación total de tu vida.

Donde estas corazón y Carne

Alegorías ambas sobre la obsesión. Una libido tan desenfrenada que necesita romper la caja torácica o comerse al objeto amado.

Cuando hablábamos con los muertos  , La Rambla Triste y Ni cumpleaños ni bautizos.

Las tres, de cierta manera, sugieren el descomunal poder del más allá malevolente. A veces basta con un roce o una visita única u ocasional para descolocar una vida humana por completa y lanzarla al abismo del horror más profundo.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Slavery, Kidnapping, Gore, Blood, Death, Rape, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Addiction

warlockdorian's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Kidnapping, Blood, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Death of parent, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Excrement, Rape, Self harm, and Suicide attempt