Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

A Touch of Ruin by Scarlett St. Clair

34 reviews

whatkatyread87's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

This could’ve been an email

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Stalking

Minor: Suicide and War

faith_mikey's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-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

2.5

It would’ve been a 3.5 star, maybe even a 4, but a lot of the later “plot” elements felt unnecessary and like they were added for drama or to be edgy. I’m also disappointed in the fact that it seems like every chapter has some mention of sex or wanting it, it’s like the main character’s relationship cannot exist without it which does not build healthy foundations and ruined the book for me personally. And then the spicy chapters had less of an impact due to the over abundance of sex talk. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

tiffanne11's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.5

You know the part in romance books where something happens and the couple breaks up but you know they just need to work it out and communicate? That is this whole book.
The on again off again saga of Hades and Persephone. While there are compelling elements, too much of it was surrounding the volatile nature of their relationship. 

Someone please tell me why Hades dogs keep leading persephone into dangerous situations. Because it's happened twice now and no one is mentioning it. 
Also the entire random stalker plot that really didn't get any attention and felt like it could've been cut out. 
Also, while we can all understand the pain that comes with death and the desire to avoid that, it is clear that the queen of the underworld should've been a bit more at peace with the whole thing. 
The most compelling thing was the end when Demeter declared war with snow.

Overall, everyone in this book was a lot more irritating with the exceptions of Hermes and Hecate. They remain perfect in every way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Alcohol

Moderate: Suicide, Torture, Stalking, and Murder

nicolaj1994's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Infidelity and Suicide

rchulin1's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

farfromsarah's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed this a lot less than the first book, the characters are so whiney and repeat their mistakes too many times for my liking, and some of the plot beats towards the end of the book were way too serious to only be tackled so briefly and then moved on from, it felt like they were only thrown in for dramatic effect and I was not a fan.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Suicide, Grief, and Alcohol

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Torture, Vomit, Medical content, and Stalking

Minor: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Car accident

savage_book_review's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

Persephone and Hades' relationship is now public knowledge, but her Divine existence remains hidden. Living in a lust-fuelled haze, can the Goddess of Spring reconcile her desire for the Lord of the Underworld with her dreams of a 'normal' life? And what happens when the Gods choose not to smile upon those she loves?

While I did enjoy the story of this one, I found there to be a lot points to unpack, none of which went into sufficient depth to have a real impact on me. The strongest thread of all is clearly the relationship between Hades and Persephone, but as with the last book there is a lot of bouncing between extremes of mood, miscommunication and a whole lot of bedroom shenanigans! The trouble is, after a while this does start to detract from the story. At one point Hades compares himself to a horny teenager, and I'd have to agree; everything seems to stir his loins! It's not badly written, but equally it does get a bit gratuitous and it ends up just not being as spicy as it should be for the sheer volume that there is. 

I think it's a shame that the stories of Leuce, Lexa and Sybil were all shoehorned into one book. They all feel a bit rushed, as do other plot points. When the resolutions come, they all happen very quickly and we just move on with the story. In this format it feels quite formulaic, and I wonder whether it might have been better to extend the series and have focused on one friend per book, or stretched the tension out over multiple books so that there could be more character and story development. 

Apollo is probably the biggest let down for me - from an a-hole to an ally in essentially one conversation, I felt this completely let down the incredibly good rivalry and potential future threat that the author was building in. 

That being said, I do like Persephone's gradual acceptance of her role as Queen of the Underworld, and her slow discovery of some of Hades' secrets and his life before her. And Hades is just a babe - he might be awful at communicating and have no idea how to be in a co-dependent relationship, but it's the mix of his 'touch her and die' attitude with his 'I'm so in love I can't think straight' vulnerability that makes him the most well rounded and fleshed out character of the series. 

Looking forward to Hades' POV on this one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape, Suicide, and Murder

diana_raquel's review

adventurous emotional medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, and Stalking

Moderate: Rape, Torture, and Car accident

Minor: Confinement, Self harm, Suicide, and Vomit

alicia_joy's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-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

2.5

The sheer amount of sex in this book is ridiculous. I know they are divine, but come on. No one has sex that much. Persephone's obtuseness and immaturity was pretty frustrating throughout most of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, and Sexual content

Moderate: Medical content, Car accident, and Alcohol

Minor: Suicide and Kidnapping

aehollins21's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Alcohol

Minor: Medical content and Car accident