Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

26 reviews

chasingpages1's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

euphemiajo's review against another edition

adventurous

2.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol

scarlett_f's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Animal death and Suicidal thoughts

kimberg's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious sad medium-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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder

cocacolor's review against another edition

hopeful reflective 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? No

4.0

First: this isn't a rom-com, and the movie is nothing like the book in terms of atmosphere and tone at all. Tonally, if the entire genre of women's fiction and A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS had a baby, it would be PRACTICAL MAGIC.

I'd read another Hoffman before, the historical THE WORLD THAT WE KNEW, and wasn't terribly impressed by it, so I came here expecting more of the same. Here, though, Hoffman's style really does work. Though the characters are also drawn in broad brushstrokes and the romances instant, PRACTICAL MAGIC really makes it feel like more of a conscious nod to fairy tales than simply bland writing. The omniscient narrator, who sometimes switches the character being followed within the same paragraph, the doses of wisdom, and the lyricism all combine to make a great experience; Hoffman knows exactly when to dole out backstory to make the reader appreciate their increasingly more whole understanding of the Owens family and the world. 

I'm of two minds, though, because the political imagination at work here isn't great. Everyone is white; everyone is heterosexual. The cure for the characters' flaws is the right man. The main characters are all neatly paired off at the end; just find your true love and you'll be fixed, Hoffman seems to say. The pre-cell phone milieu is interesting and evocative, but drives home the kind of stifling suburban whiteness that characters aspire to.

Overall, a serious and occasionally dark book about sisterhood and female family members in a magical realism milieu, where the cure for all conflict is heterosexual romance.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Grief, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Rape, Sexism, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Death of parent

Sally's love interest

, a character we are apparently supposed to find sympathetic, has a moment where he wishes he were the kind of person who might rape someone so he can keep kissing her when she pushes him away.

eve_reads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted sad tense medium-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

3.75

 Overall Thoughts:
⁕ Hoffman's writing style is very distinct. She uses a lot of quirky metaphors and sensual descriptions that create an overall sense of fairytale-like nostalgia. I didn't feel super connected to the characters or even the plot while reading, but just the general sense of fall coziness that her writing provides was enough to keep me happy.

⁕ I love that Hoffman keeps the themes of sisterhood and family at the forefront. While, again, I didn't feel super passionate about the characters, her honest depictions of family feuds was the closest they got to being relatable.

⁕ I didn't really care for any of the love interests. Many of the relationships relied upon the "love at first sight" and fate tropes, so there was no natural development and they just simply weren't interesting.

To read my full review, visit: https://evereads.online/
For regular book-related content, follow my Instagram account: @eve_reads 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Alcohol

kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition

fast-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? No

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Sexual harassment

zannayo's review

adventurous dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

• 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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Stalking, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Bullying, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Car accident, and Death of parent

atlanticgiantpumpkin's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.75

As an autistic woman, I spent a lot of the book thinking “Is this actually how people think?” Because everything was very exaggerated.  I do feel like it went on a bit at times giving unnecessary details, but it was wonderful.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual violence, Stalking, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

At one point, one of the girls is chased down in a field by men trying to rape her.

cjeter's review against another edition

emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

I love the way Hoffman writes: they way she flows from one perspective to the next, how she describes feelings and emotions, and how she presents all different kinds of love.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Grief, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Suicide

for the suicide warning it is briefly mentioned toward the end of the book on page 261.