Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Leech by Hiron Ennes

40 reviews

sky_maris's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? Yes

4.75

Pros:
Beautifully written - the prose feels ripped from a Gothic novel but maintains its own modern twist. The narrative style shifts throughout, but in a wonderfully subtle way that you don't really notice until you're In It (TM). I was expecting a good old body horror romp when I started, but this is much more existential than that and I adored it. Leech is a perfect example of how horror can be used to explore difficult  concepts and make a point without losing the fundamental elements of the genre. I was creeped out the whole time while simultaneously pondering my own existence.

Cons:
The pacing is a tad slow, though never slow enough to become boring. The narrative style, particularly at the beginning, can be a tad hard to follow, but the author did an excellent job of orienting the reader.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Drug abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Blood, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

dani_wasia's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

dellybear's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A stunning piece of literature that had me guessing till the very end. Loved every second of it. A fantastically unique main character, one entitity spread out over hundreds of bodies. Very gorey and tense. I enjoyed this book immensely. Lots of medical themes, wouldn't recommend if you can't handle parasites and medical scenarios.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Suicide, Medical content, and Pregnancy

odunayo_y's review against another edition

dark mysterious

4.75

Would’ve been PEAK if not for the the imo weaker last 15%. Which was excellent for the horror aspect but narratively it was not as strong as The rest of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

galaxywitch's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

charlatte_lee's review

adventurous dark mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Infertility

kmartbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

5.0

 Equal parts delightful and horrific. I ate this up until it got really difficult to read and even then, I couldn't move on without finishing it but also dreaded it. That creeping, anxious dread is exactly where you want a gothic horror story to be, though.

I'll be thinking about this one for a good long while.

This will not be for everyone but dang, was it for me. Seriously, I fully understand if you don't think that this deserves five stars, but I think it deserves one million stars.

I am absolutely obsessed with this but it will not be for everyone. Anyone who likes slow, creeping horror and doesn't mind some medical jargin, disturbing and graphic body horror, and an incredibly subtle world building with mostly unlikeable characters will devour this. I listen to most audiobooks at 2x+ speeds, but this has almost always been at 1.5x at the most because I am hanging onto every word as the narrator talks directly to me. And also the narrator is a parasite. I am going to make this book my entire personality. What's more is that the narrator is a trans woman, the main character is agender, and the author is non-binary. I'm horrified and cannot look away and I'm delighted with the slowly meandering tension that is translating to deeply uncomfortable and unraveling mental states. Horror done exceptionally right.

I'm obsessed. And I never want to read it again. And I want to read it again immediately.

I hope this helps and/or makes sense to someone. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

Moderate: Child abuse

krhanson68's review

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

1.0

Very dark story. Complicated story with convoluted plot.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Kidnapping

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

 

Context:

I added Leech by Hiron Ennes to my TBR after hearing Kayla from BooksandLala recommend it. I borrowed it from my library through the Libby app.

 

Review:

I approached Leech with some trepidation based on the reviews I’ve encountered. However, I am immensely impressed by the book’s originality—in fact, Leech is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read. I mean that as a compliment. Ennes crafts a world completely unlike anything I’ve ever read before with the precision of a surgeon. Everything feels deliberate and focused, from the French-inspired dialect spoken by some of the characters to the peculiarities of the setting. They use this specific setting and cast of characters to explore parasitism in many different forms, from the supernatural to the everyday.  I am also impressed with the book’s writing style, which is powerful and effective without being flowery. 

 

Despite my fascination with the world and my appreciation for Ennes’s writing, I did find myself somewhat reluctant to pick up the book at times. The book does not provide a strong “hook” for the reader to latch onto, either narratively or through its characters. Even well into the book, it is unclear which characters, if any, deserve our sympathy. Additionally, the narrative style of the book is inherently confusing due to the protagonist’s situation (I’m being intentionally vague here to avoid spoilers), and the murky positions of the side characters. If you’re looking for a book that prioritizes clarity and accessibility, you might want to look elsewhere.

 

There are a couple of other minor aspects of this book that didn’t quite work for me. The first is that it uses two characters that are twins in a very stereotypical and dehumanizing manner common to horror books that, in my opinion, did not add much to the story. The second is that the ending appears to abandon the character journey of the protagonist for another character; I would have liked a little bit more closure for the protagonist.

 

Leech will not be for everyone, but I loved its thematic explorations, writing style, and unique premise and worldbuilding. These elements were strong enough to overcome some problems I had with the narrative. 

 

The Run-Down: 

You might like Leech if . . . 

·      You are looking for a book with a very unique premise and world

·      You prefer deliberately crafted settings and characters to sweeping, epic fantasy/sci-fi tales

·      You are interested in a thematic exploration of parasitism

·      You like eerie, gory horror stories that do not deign to explain everything to the reader

 

You might not like Leech if . . . 

·      You are sensitive to the book’s triggers (please look at them before reading; they won’t spoil anything!)

·      You dislike experimental narrative premises

·      You like a story with a strong narrative driving force

·      You dislike complex plotlines that leave many questions unanswered

 

 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Infertility, and Vomit

Minor: Ableism, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, and Classism

whatthesquids's review

adventurous dark emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Medical content, and Medical trauma