Reviews tagging 'Death'

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

140 reviews

jessthanthree's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

nikkohlkaleah's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No

3.5

More interesting than enjoyable. It feels like reading an art piece.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

astareads's review against another edition

challenging mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Not bad, not great. I probably didn't understand half of it, whereas the other half was either thrilling or boring. 

I went through every footnote and reference that was actually inside the book, and that too was a mixed bag. Sometimes it was interesting, sometimes it just kept referring back to itself which got frustrating.

I think I would've enjoyed the story of The Navidson Record on its own, as Johnny Truant's bits were just incomprehensible most of the time and not really much of interest until towards the end when

he finally let go of the drugs and sex.

On the good side I was reminded of Susanne Clarke's Piranesi, which is one of my favourites and has a similar labyrinthine feel to it, although a lot more literally than this!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

stuxain's review

adventurous 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

4.0

House of leaves is unconventional, a refreshing spin on classic fiction. Though what makes it shine as different also brings drawbacks. Rambling side tangents are at times whimsical and endearing, while at other times heavy and academic, making it difficult to get through for those expecting a mystery thriller.
Overall the plot is solid, the characters compelling, the levels of narrative fascinating, and the unique storytelling and page design absolutely delightful. At times what feels like a bog to read wraps up with a surprisingly insightful takeaway. The way the narrators slowly reveal information keep it suspenseful and make for a compelling second read if interested.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child abuse, Death, and Suicide

sapphic_shroom'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? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Mental illness, and Sexual violence

gondorgirl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Car accident

ihavealibrarycardandilluseit's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

HOOOOLY SHIT

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder

Moderate: Infidelity

Minor: Rape and Sexual assault

heather667's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense slow-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence

kayceeisbookish's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I'm nowhere near smart enough to fully comprehend what I just read. I enjoyed this experience, but I'll never touch this again. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Blood, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail

bokslukaren's review

challenging dark tense slow-paced

3.0

You know what they say; one man's unpublished essay is another's hookup journal and spiral into insanity! 

Get your notepad (physical or digital) ready, and while you're at it you might as well grab a mirror, because this book requires you to twist and turn with careful and thorough attentiveness to have a chance at being deciphered and comprehended! House of Leaves is an analytical and detailed essay (including footnotes) about a documentary, as well as reactions to said essay. With foreshadowing, insanity, mental illness and riddles hounding every corner of every page and swirling around in the reader's head, notes offer a necessary stability. This book is intensely unsettling and somehow still managed to keep my attention despite the 700 hundred page essay-style confusion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Mental illness, Violence, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Drug use, Gun violence, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault