Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Henkien talo by Isabel Allende

34 reviews

sakurachiyou's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Classism

taracloudclark's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny informative reflective sad tense slow-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

The House of the Spirits is a family saga following Clara, a unique woman who, at an early age, reveals a mystical inclination, and her family through the Chilean tumult in mid-20th century. 

This is a long book. At times I had difficulty maintaining attention, but I think overall it was worth it. It was definitely outside my personal or familiar experience, and I feel I’m better for reading it.

Narrators were excellent.  

This was part of the StoryGraph read around the world challenge. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

rhi_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

imlfox's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, War, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, and Car accident

miuku's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, and Abortion

Minor: Addiction, Grief, and Alcohol

knenigans's review against another edition

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Abortion, Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, and Car accident

milliminal's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

This story is as wide as it is deep, spanning decades with a multitude of characters and storylines, intertwined with a family and a nation's history of revolution. The density of the writing and the sheer amount of trauma described in these pages make it a challenging read, but a worthwhile one. I leave feeling both sorrow and hope simultaneously, with an immense appreciation for the importance of recording our histories.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Classism

mightyoscura's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

nimeneth's review against another edition

Probably a minority here, but I just didn't like it.

The book is a tale of misery and bizarre characters, and that would be fine if the writing was engaging. Unfortunately it's not - it's a lot of summary, very minimal dialogue, and the changes in the characters are superficial and revert relatively quickly. I wound up skimming the last 40 pages I "read" because it just wasn't engaging.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Classism

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

felkyo_grey's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, and War