Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Lemon by Kwon Yeo-sun

8 reviews

asolis's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

4.0

A series of vignettes from the perspectives of several characters - the sister, the classmates, the accused - chip away at the mysterious murder of a beautiful but odd teen girl, and how these characters coped. Tightly written, effective, and complex. Though the mystery unfolds, the book is ultimately about those who go on, and how. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

ren_the_hobbit's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I didn’t not like this book, but I’m also not sure I liked it. It had a lot to say and has left me thinking about it for a long time, which is a good sign in a book. But I also found it a bit confusing. I would recommend reading for yourself to see. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Sexual assault, and Violence

tashtasher's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Bullying, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

Minor: Classism

jayisreading's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

3.5

I picked this up with very little knowledge of what the book was about, other than that there was some element of crime in it. I don’t think it has quite the thriller/crime vibe and, instead, feels more like a deep reflection on how death impacts different people and, for some, the way grief manifests over time. I definitely felt the book was far too short, but I also wouldn’t be able to tell you how to expand the story some more. In some ways, maybe keeping it succinct was for the best. I thought the pacing could have been a little slower, but maybe it felt fast due to how short the book was.

I’m not sure what else to say about this one, but there’s a lot to think about. That being said, I can see how this book isn’t for everyone, especially if they’re looking for a plot focused on the murder as opposed to character studies of sorts.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, and Kidnapping

Minor: Ableism and Eating disorder

kcelena's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Grief, Medical trauma, and Murder

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Terminal illness, Kidnapping, and Death of parent

snowwhitehatesapples's review against another edition

dark reflective tense fast-paced

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

2.0

 Review can also be found at Snow White Hates Apples.

Told in different perspectives and at different points of time, Lemon is a story that revolves around the murder of Da-on’s beautiful older sister, Hae-on. But, it’s not a murder mystery in the traditional sense. Instead, this book focuses more on exploring grief and trauma in various perspectives while touching on other topics like prejudice based on appearance, privilege and inequality; corruption within the system; and the deeply rooted misogyny in South Korean society.

Unfortunately, despite my liking books that are in the same vein, Lemon is not the book for me. As aforementioned, this book is less traditional murder mystery and more an exploration the aftermath. I had expected stronger emotions and more human-like characters, but the narratives were in overall, too clinical and detached. I felt no suspense, no anxiety, no sadness—nothing. And, because of this lack of emotional impact, the impact resultant from the observations of the prejudice, corruption and misogyny suffered as well. In short, Lemon read more like social commentary disguised as a mystery novel. To me, it felt that the main point of the book leaned more towards on emphasising the social commentary while the characters were simply vessels to deliver that commentary. And, I’m sorry to write this, but the social commentary was just typical and obvious (there’s no subtlety at all, which made the commentary hollow). It simply scratched the surface, providing no new or deeper, thoughtful outlook on the realities.

Honestly, Lemon fell short of the hard-hitting brilliance it could’ve been. If the social commentary had been more subtle and the human emotions of the characters more well developed, this book would’ve been stunning. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Violence, and Murder

katiewhocanread's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Bullying and Cancer

Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent

thenovelbookshelf's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.0

This is a book about the people left behind after a horrific unsolved murder.
  
Each chapter has a different narrator in a different time after the murder. They tell of the anger, dispair, sadness, and so many more emotions that the characters feel because of the incident.
  
It does become confusing with each chapter as the narrators aren't obvious. But Lemon is a beautiful and emotional story that will get to you.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Murder

Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Alcohol