Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez

192 reviews

sadlytriste's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

It was my first time reading a collection of short stories and my first horror book, and I found the experience quite enjoyable. Immersing myself in one story at a time was a unique experience, but some of the stories were so compelling that I couldn't resist reading more. It felt like a fantastic foray into the world of horror literature. Mariana Enriquez's writing style is captivating and enthralling, keeping me eagerly anticipating what would happen next with every page turn. Mariana Enriquez skillfully delves into a wide range of themes, including witchcraft, curses, trauma, and forbidden desires.

Among all the stories, "Meat" and "Kids Who Come Back" were my favorites. However, I should note that the stories can be pretty vile, so if you don't like that, you should probably avoid it. Overall, I would rate the collection 4 out of 5.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt, and Murder

laran_s's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, and Trafficking

rowanelisa's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury

libraryoflanelle's review against another edition

2.0

This was my first Mariana Enriquez and I did not like it. I figured some of the language use could have been down to translation issues, this being an earlier work and/or a one off but sadly that does not seem to be the case. I do not often review books that aren't ARCs so did not immediately review this one, despite having issue with it. I CANNOT recommend this book. The writing style and some of the stories were very much my vibe but the repeated use of inappropriate language and a whole lot of fatphobia cannot go unmentioned. Below are some examples along with TWs for those who feel similarly to me or who appreciate the heads up.

 

Some NOPE quotes with TWs (pg numbers from UK edition):

 
TW: Inappropriate slavery reference

“I claimed mental exhaustion, and they understood; "You've been working like a s***e," they told me.” Pg 8 

 
TW: Fatphobia

“Maybe if he saw how ugly her body was she had some really tubby legs, which she claimed were because she'd played hockey when she was little, but half of us had played hockey too, and none of us had those big ham hocks. Plus she had a flat ass and broad hips, which was why jeans never fit her well. If he saw those defects (plus the black hairs she never really got rid of maybe she couldn't pull them out down to the root, she was really dark), maybe Diego would stop liking Silvia and finally pay attention to us.” Pg 16 
 
“A girl was walking ahead of her, somewhat unsta ble, with jeans too low and tight on her hips so her flaccid belly spilled out from under her short shirt a roll of chalky, stretch-marked flesh that would have been easy to hide with a long, baggy shirt, but the girl clearly wasn't worried about aesthetics.” Pg 57  

TW: Transphobia

“but carefully, because she didn't want any cops to see her, and she didn't want to ask the tr*****s for money, because they beat up girls like her.” Pg 132 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Pedophilia, Self harm, Transphobia, Violence, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Rape, Suicide, and Kidnapping

gnomeyjo's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.0

I love magical realism, but this book really pushed me. Was extremely unsettling, even if you love horror. Defo an interesting read and I respect the commitment to the style. One story in particular has really stayed with me and continues to disturb me at random pockets of my day. A very well written book that lives up to the high praise, but difficult to say enjoyable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence

An extreme level of content warnings needed.

malineu's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Self harm, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia

Minor: Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

lizetteratura's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

extremely biased ranking:

1. Our Lady of the Quarry
2. Meat
3. Back When We Talked to the Dead
4. The Cart
5. The Lookout
6. No Birthdays or Baptisms
7. Rambla Triste 
8.  Where Are You, Dear Heart? 
9.  Angelita Unearthed  
10. The Well
11. Kids Who Come Back
12. The Dangers of Smoking in Bed

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Self harm

Moderate: Pedophilia, Suicide, and Trafficking

Minor: Rape, Transphobia, and Kidnapping

theresa_carmody's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Pedophilia, Self harm, and Suicide attempt

jess_18's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

a lot of this made me really uncomfortable in places, which sometimes felt unnecessary. however it was written very well and was interesting to say the least. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol

sharkgirl45's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Amazingly spooky and haunting story collection. Every story had me at the very least disconcerted.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Blood, Excrement, and Alcohol

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Vomit, and Murder