Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan

148 reviews

nmuels's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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

3.75

 I think I would have enjoyed this book more if the world were not actively falling apart around us. Mayhaps the weeks leading up to an election are not the best time to read a dystopian sci-fi surrounding women's rights and reproductive freedoms, etc.

That said, the writing and the storytelling are great. The content is just "oof". And I don't know that I'd recommend this book to any mothers or folks trying to become mothers. Yike. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Suicide, and Abandonment

Minor: Violence and Xenophobia

_fallinglight_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

3.5

This book is the future Republicans want.

I'm never going to be a mom and still reading this both unsettled and infuriated me!! Took me such a long time to get through it bc I literally wanted to jump some of these characters lmao Also, Gust is a frickin sociopath and he should be in daddy jail bc fůck that guy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Child abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racism, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Abandonment

perfectcupoftea's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Miscarriage

msemeniuk's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

bubblybelle's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-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? Yes

3.25

this book unfortunately just didn’t live up to my expectations. it made a lot of poignant commentary about the way mothers are treated in our society, especially mothers of color; however, the plot really dragged at times. the romance subplot towards the middle there also didn’t really add much for me. overall, this was fine but not great. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Abandonment

Moderate: Self harm and Suicide

Minor: Miscarriage and Pedophilia

therapywithjess's review against another edition

dark 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

3.75

Really enjoyed this book. Finished it over 3 days. It didn’t feel like ‘the kind of book you can’t out down’ but it exceeded my expectations. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Emotional abuse, Self harm, and Sexism

rosiemb's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

lillieharrisonsaunders's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-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: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Abandonment

liabl_28's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

i think it does a pretty good job getting across the point, i did cry but sometimes i think it's repetitive and it gets weird around some descriptions.
the way it made me so furious that i had to stop reading, i really liked it

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Forced institutionalization

theemptybox's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

5.0

Emotionally wrecked from this book. As a mixed Asian-American, a lot of these lines hit HARD and a lot of the scenarios were very familiar. As someone with little to no maternal instincts, a lot of this book was teeth grinding and wanting to yell at the background characters. 

There is no wrong or right way to raise a child but there are some universal ways that should be included for every child. This book is thought provoking in ways I never would have guessed. Along with the question of what makes a good mother, this book challenges racial, sexual, and gender questions. It's a psychological horror and I loved it. 

I loved how quickly it moves while also layering back sometimes to provide context. I was on the edge of my seat for a good chunk of it. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Abandonment