Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

29 reviews

desireewoodwhite's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

Only if you have something else to read 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse

mack_e's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

“Geek Love argues that what seems sub-human about us is in fact what makes us most human, the very root of our humanity.” - Helena Fitzgerald 

I’ve been struggling to find the words to describe the gnawing that this book has left me with. It is not horror, but it is horrifying. Definitely a book I used tabs on. I get why many people favorite it (I would say ‘enjoy it’, but I’m not sure how true that is). But it does help that Katherine Dunn has a way with making sure the words that need to hit home, do. 

Would definitely recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Excrement, Abortion, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

michaelion's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.25

Meg, you owe me for emotional damages! You owe me for something! My time back! I am owed!!!

Sick and twisted! But the book isn't bad. The best part is the creative writing. Extremely, vividly, wildly creative. 

This should be a lesson to all parents: if you're a bad enough parent your family tree might end up looking like a diamond!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Dysphoria

Minor: Racism, Transphobia, Abortion, and Abandonment

zerinasahar's review against another edition

challenging dark funny 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, and Pregnancy

kaznar342's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Abandonment

the_other_yvonne'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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Physical abuse, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical trauma, Abortion, and Suicide attempt

zhort's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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

4.0

 I entered this book blind and judged it purely by its cover/title. I would not recommend people do the same.

After finishing Crime & Punishment, I was looking to relax and read something easy and fun so I picked up Geek Love thinking it would be some dumb romcom between geeks. Well it turns out geeks in this book has a very different definition:
Geek [noun, slang]. A carnival performer whose act usually consists of biting the head off a live chicken or snake.

Geek Love is about the Binewskis, a family of circus performers, where the children are all freaks of some kind; born with flippers instead of limbs (Arty), an albino dwarf with a hunchback (Olympia), conjoined twins (Elly and Iphy), and a telekinetic baby (Chick). The caveat here being they were all deliberately "made" by the parents, Al and Lily, by having Lily consume various alchemical concoctions while she was pregnant. This is all for the sole purpose of having the freakiest children possible to make their traveling circus a success. If this grosses you out, please cross out this book forever from your reading list because it gets much, much worse.

What follows is a tale of jealousy, unhinged egos, and unquestioning devotion that made me hate every single character in the book. Arty is the oldest and most charismatic, and believes that being freaks are what makes life special, so he does the most sensible thing and starts a cult that demands their followers cut their limbs off. The twins have wildly different personalities but their main problems begin, as with most girls, when they hit puberty. Chick is the youngest and most powerful, but is also the most empathetic and naive. We follow this story through the eyes of Olympia, and for someone with a hunchback she somehow manages to be the most spineless creature in the family. She loves Arty and stands beside him while he commits mass mutilation, familial abuse, murder, all for the minuscule hope that Arty will love her back.

Overall this has been the most grotesque, tragic, and twisted stories I have read, and I hated everyone and everything that was happening in the book. There are themes of betrayal, manipulation, murder, abuse, mutilation, grooming, incest, and basically anytime you think the story has reached a new low Dunn surprises you with her limbo skills. Throughout the entire process of reading it my soul has felt unclean but I couldn't tear myself away.

8/10, would not recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

ann17young's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

5.0

It’s weird, wonderful, and gruesome. The bonds of family and blood are blur under the light of a freak show where normal and weird are just words used by those who fear what is different. I have not been so captivated by a book in a long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

pseudolain's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Rape, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Dementia, Mass/school shootings, Abortion, and Murder

Minor: Infertility and Miscarriage

katelynalice's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense 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

3.75

Okay low-key I hated this book I'm just nosy and needed to finish it. At first I felt bad for Oly but then I was like "What the fuck are you doing Oly". Boy Howdy if you like fucked up family drama then be my guest!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment