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maygetdizzy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
stratospheric's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Gun violence, Suicide, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
abhea_reads's review against another edition
4.75
I love linguistics so much and this book would get 5 stars if slurs didn't jump scare me every time I started to feel safe again
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Incest, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Classism
Minor: Rape
abigailhaagen's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, and Vomit
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Antisemitism
goldbs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Islamophobia, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia, Incest, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Gaslighting
pakrat1237's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death and Incest
the_neeerd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, and Antisemitism
Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, and Grief
thisiserintehe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If there was only one book in the world, it would be this one.
My most favourite book ever <3
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
georgialee01's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Blood
roaming_enn's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Does such a thing as "the fatal flaw," that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside of literature? It used to think it didn't. Now I think it does. And I think mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.
Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like t he Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely? To throw off the chains of being for an instant, to shatter the accident of our mortal selves?
Summary:
This book is about a bunch of Ancient Greek undergraduate students and that time they murdered one of their classmates. The one who dies is revealed in the beginning, and it is the HOW they get there that's the real story. The story is told in first-person through Richard Papen's POV, a newest Greek student that the professor accepts, newest member of the group that had been together for longer. He is writing just under a decade after the events of the book.
Thoughts:
I love how academic it was, and it feels like a book written by an academic (which it was) for other academics. The author doesn't hold your hand, assuming you're smart enough to follow the story with what she gives you. There was at least one scene that I thought was entirely unnecessary for the Islamophobia it spewed, and I'm still not sure why it was included. The ending was a little disappointing because I wanted things to be a particular way but they ended up not. I wish it had been more than just a handful of years later when the story is told, rather than Richard still being a young man. But in either case, a lot of people seem to hate this book. I loved it. I don't love the characters, but I found them, and the story, REALLY compelling. And for me, that makes up for not loving the characters.
Be sure to check all the content warnings. I tried to include as many as I could think of in this review.
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Islamophobia
Minor: Cursing, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Vomit, and Antisemitism