Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

18 reviews

avacadosocks's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol

Moderate: Gore, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer, Incest, Pedophilia, Terminal illness, and Vomit

thestorydoer's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-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? No

3.0

Now, I can safely say, I am not the target audience for this novel. I am a university student with ADHD, and Im also very obsessed with efficient storytelling.

This book is scary, yeah, but only occasionally. it's filled with long ramblings that almost felt like a train of thought. Unfortunately, I couldn't focus on the book so often, I missed a lot of the plot elements. Yet I stuck it out because the scary elements in this book are incredibly clever. Most of the other scary factors will be found not in the ramblings itself, but the afterthought and questioning of those ramblings. That being said, I think I should've read something else.

It took me so long because I struggle reading books which break flow. This constantly asks the reader to jump around the book. This is what I tried on my first attempt but the book made no sense. therefore, it is best read as a linear story on a first read, and a non-linear story on a second. although, I did skip a lot of the appendix mentions because I just couldn't be bothered.

I can imagine this being very good for some people as it can be genuinely terrifying. However, if you are at all in my demographic (ADHD, doesn't ponder on stories and details afterward, prefers an ebb and flow in your books), you may not like this. Spend your $75 on 3 $25 books by your local Dymocks instead.

Overall, 3/5. Genuinely scary at times but I personally struggled reading 70% of it. You probably won't like it if you're anything like me.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia

13octopus's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol

Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Blood

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, and Incest

5am's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Car accident, and Alcohol

Moderate: Rape

Minor: Cancer, Cannibalism, and War

everyotherpageorso's review against another edition

While the mind-numbing pseudo-academic style of much of the book was the bulk of the reason I found this book unenjoyable, the excerpts from Johnny Truant were much worse. Almost every single contribution he made to the book included a description of his sexual encounters, which don’t fit the tone of the rest of the book at all. That’s not the real issue either. The problem is: almost every single female character outside of the Navidson Record exists SOLELY to have sex with Johnny or his friend Lude. What really made me throw in the towel (and I don’t consider this a spoiler, because like I said, these intermissions literally have no impact on the actual plot) was “Lude’s List” where he writes the names, ages, and cursory descriptions of the women he’d slept with that month, as well as date and times of day. In the second of these lists, the women are listed only by their names and traumas, and many of them were either raped or molested. These women are glossed over and their trauma is used to describe the revelation of Johnny and Lude that maybe November wasn’t as fun as they thought and that their fleeting relationships with these women and others meant nothing 😐.   In which case, why objectify their trauma at all ?? Then goes on to describe (literally on the very next page) a new conquest’s DDD breasts on the very next page, as well as how he’s both entranced and disgusted by her. Further, right before THAT, one of Johnny’s intended hookups (Clara) tells him about her rape and decides not to sleep with him, and he wonders to himself and the reader if she is defective, broken, or “devoid of meaning and love” because of it. Every time I felt like I could really immerse myself in a bit of the eeriness of the book (and NO, this book is not scary or frightening, it’s very mild) Johnny or Lude detail more of their slimy exploits. It was greasy and gross and I don’t even really feel that bad for not finishing it. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Violence

Moderate: Misogyny and Rape

Minor: Child abuse and Pedophilia

marigo1ds's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

It’s undoubtedly an amazing book. It is also intentionally difficult, confusing, and long. I really enjoyed it, but it is not an easy read. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape

jerusha's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Medical content, Cannibalism, and Medical trauma

Minor: Ableism, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Death of parent

otherworlds's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense 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

5.0

Wow. This book is disorienting and haunting in the best kind of way. It re-envisions the concept of horror itself, subverting expectations of the genre in a terrifying way reminiscent of half-remembered nightmares. It puts words to that wordless instinctual fear of the dark, the impossible, the unknown and unknowable. At the heart of this story, though, is intertwining narratives of trauma, grief, and love.

I highly recommend it! That being said, please heed the trigger warnings and take care of yourself while reading this book. It's very graphic and upsetting at times, especially if you're already prone to derealization or paranoia.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Islamophobia, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide and Blood

Minor: Animal death

Unreality and paranoia. May be triggering for psychotic/dissociative readers.