Scan barcode
michaelion's review against another edition
- 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
Sick and twisted! But the book isn't bad. The best part is the creative writing. Extremely, vividly, wildly creative.
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
kaznar342's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Abandonment
aoi_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Moderate: Cursing, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Minor: Incest, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Murder, and Pregnancy
zhort's review against another edition
- 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
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.
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
lucianacandler's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
At times it's not an easy book to stomach. There are things that will shock and repulse far more than the things you expect. But it's well worth a read, and you come away with more sense of love and humor than any of the horrific acts that took place.eveshilton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
autumnwhite's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Incest, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
lycheejelly's review against another edition
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Incest, Physical abuse, Racism, Transphobia, Dementia, Stalking, Lesbophobia, and Abandonment
Minor: Sexual content and Fire/Fire injury