Reviews tagging 'Infertility'

A Murder on Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey

9 reviews

pikkumarja's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

Voi, miten viihdyttävä mysteeri! Vaikka tässä tapahtuu kyllä murha ja kaikkea muutakin kauheaa, on tämä ehdottomasti cozy crimea. Pidin todella paljon siitä, että kirjassa oli feministinen ote, mutta myös parsiperinteitä kunnioitettiin todella. En malta odottaa, että lainaan kirjastosta seuraavan osan!

Olihan tässä tosin mysteeriksi aika paljon kaikkea ja toinen aikataso oli lähestulkoon vastenmielinen.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Infertility, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Blood, and Vomit

Minor: Trafficking

erebus53's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

This was a book that was recommended to me as I was interested in reading something set in the 1920s. My quick review reads:
Indian girl study's law, marries badly, flash forward to after she is qualified, she is legal council for 3 widows and then murder! whodunit?

This is a historical fiction mystery and so it has a few inserts of some fairly antiquated practices. Falling foul of tradition, Perveen is captured by her husband's family and forcibly detained during her monthly "unclean time". This could be hard to read for some people, as it also deals with women who suffered and died in similar situations before such practices of traditional Zoroastrian culture were challenged and fazed out in the face of modern medical science. The rest of the story has a backdrop of the attitudes toward marriage, arranged marriages and the rules and attitudes toward marriage and its annulment in India in the early 20th century.

Perveen is a subversively anachronistic character. She meddles and fights for the rights of women, and when she finds three widows in religious seclusion from men, have signed away their inheritance to a charity, Miss Mistry smells a rat. Presuming that someone is manipulating the women, Perveen Mistry undertakes to use her privileged position as a woman trained in law, to meet with these women who will not speak to a man outside of their family, and inform them of their Legal Rights.

Soon after the women start questioning things, their caretaker is bloodily murdered, and the meddling Perveen is not prepared to back away and let the police violate these women's religious seclusion.

Oddly, this story was quite fun, if dire in places. It was informative and seems well researched. It gives a nuanced view of how the 1920s in India differed from UK and USA in the 1920s. One of Perveen's friends is expelled from her school for being overly intimate with another girl.. oops. Seems a bit of an aside, but I guess it's better than not dealing with the topic at all.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

heather667's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Grief

Minor: Homophobia, Rape, Suicide, and Lesbophobia

theredheded_bibliomaniac's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Murder, and Pregnancy

singalana's review against another edition

adventurous informative relaxing 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? It's complicated

4.0

Hurmaava kirja vie aikamatkalle 1920-luvun Bombayhyn, jossa erilaiset kulttuurit kohtaavat, joskus kohtalokkainkin seurauksin.

Perveen Mistry on Bombayn ensimmäinen naispuolinen lakimies. Hän saa tehtäväkseen hoitaa perinnön jaon menehtyneen muslimimiehen kolmen eristyksessä elävän vaimon ja näiden lapsien kesken. Kimurantiksi muuttuva tapaus herättää muistoja Perveenin omasta menneisyydestä.

Kirja kuvasi kiehtovalla tavalla Intialaisia kulttuureja ja naisen asemaa 1920-luvun Intiassa. Vaikka kirjassa vilisi kulttuureihin liittyviä termejä ja sanoja, oli sen tapahtumia silti helppo seurata, ja vieraat sanat antoivat tarinalle oman mausteensa. Perveen päähenkilönä oli mielenkiintoinen ja hahmo oli uskottava kaikkine puolineen.

Kuuntelin kirjan äänikirjana, ja aluksi minua hieman häiritsi se, että kirja kertoo nuoren intialaisnaisen elämästä, mutta lukijan ääni kuulostaa liian kypsältä hahmoon nähden. Mutta totuin siihen nopeasti, ja aloin pitämään lukijan rauhallisesta tyylistä. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, and Colonisation

bessadams's review against another edition

emotional mysterious 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

skudiklier's review against another edition

adventurous 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? No

4.75

I enjoyed this! I was very caught up in both timelines, and at every stage I wanted to know what would happen. The mystery wasn't too easy to figure out (for me at least), and i read the second half of the book in one day because I just needed to finish it. I'd definitely read more if this became a series! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Blood, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Infertility, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, and Classism

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Racism, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Colonisation

henrismum's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative mysterious sad slow-paced

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

3.75

First in series-

Audiobook (All of my entries on The Story Graph are audiobooks.)

Why I added this book to my TBR pile: I tried reading the book a few years ago, but I didn't get far. The title kept showing up as suggested reading, so I decided to try to audiobook. Even in audio form, it was a very slow story. I had to listen at 1.2 speed. 
The subject matter was quite intriguing, but I wonder how this work is accepted in 2020's India. I assume the writer did a great deal of research and attempted to present the facts accurately. Nonetheless, I wonder how Indians (and Indian-Americans and Indians who live in Britain and around the world) rate this representation of their culture 100 years ago. 
Will I read more of the series? Probably Not Maybe Likely Most Likely Definitely

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Pregnancy

spiderwitch's review against another edition

informative 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? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Murder

Moderate: Infertility

Minor: Terminal illness