Reviews tagging 'Death'

Trust by Hernán Díaz

29 reviews

couchaphant's review against another edition

informative mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

This is a fascinating read - it inspired me to pause and research 1850-1919 New York, a period of time I knew little about. This is a layered book that is reminiscent of looking into parallel facing mirrors.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer and Death

honeybeewitched87's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Minor: Alcohol

kellyofcali's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

I...did not love this. It had an interesting structure, with very different styles for different sections, so I definitely liked some more than others (I enjoyed the end sections by female characters most, and the middle section by one of the male characters least) - but I found some quite slow. I also just think I'm not super inherently interested in the finance world, so that bit got kind of old for me. I do think it had some interesting themes around wealth, illness, relationships, and storytelling, and my book club was split on it (some really liked it, others were in my camp) so I wouldn't say no to it for everyone!

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, and Medical content

Minor: Alcohol

juksu's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism

Moderate: Cancer, Death, Terminal illness, Medical trauma, and Classism

Minor: War

bessadams's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

fiction for nonfiction readers

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Death of parent

hmetwade's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Self harm, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting

gracescanlon's review against another edition

challenging mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.25

In Trust, Díaz used unique method of storytelling I'd not encountered but much enjoyed. I loved that the first two parts of the book were written by men, both with fond feelings toward the main female character, but flawed, and limited by their upbringing and the society around them all the same, while the second parts were told by female characters about their own experiences, using their own words.

The ordering of these parts created the effect of the women setting the record straight. One woman saw herself in the other and used her own experience as a woman to read between the lines of the previous narratives to learn the real story while placating men. Meanwhile, the other woman told the actual story, as it happened in her life, using her own words. I loved that it seemed that it was the combined efforts of the women that revealed the truth - the first, in analyzing the information she was given and pursuing the real story, and the second, in recording the facts as she knew them.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Infertility, Grief, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Violence

znvisser's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.5

The concept of this book is intriguing and even though its form slowed the pace and I didn't enjoy all writing styles equally, I found the execution really clever and the story interesting. I loved the way in which layers were added to bring all kinds of nuance and contradictions to events and characters, building depth into them and their mutual connections. I was especially entertained by the part through Ida's perspective, both its plot and her reflections. Beautifully done. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, and Gaslighting

ashylibrarian's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-paced

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

3.0

This is not an easy leisure read, and I don’t know that it would appeal to a wide audience of readers. The story is pretty complex and gets really dense in certain sections. The first 50% felt very literary as we learn about the characters and their connections to one another. There are also many nuances throughout the book that can be confusing – for example, one section focuses heavily on financial information and Wall Street, and to be honest, I was pretty lost. It is very well-written and interestingly explores the same story in four (4) stories.  

Explores themes of power, visibility, gender roles/expectations, and how, and by whom, history is recorded. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Mental illness, and Misogyny

Moderate: Terminal illness

alisonvh's review against another edition

challenging reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

This book is so good! It’s about wealth and who gets to tell their own stories and it’s so, so well done! I devoured this book in a week and that’s not normal for me.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Xenophobia