Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin

18 reviews

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This was a tense gothic tale that really dug into power dynamics in relationships, the dehumanization of women, and the horrors of disempowerment. It also showed the lack of autonomy that is often pushed upon pregnant people, as if your body is no longer your own, and the world is invited in to control you. Overall, I’m very glad to have read this book, an interesting social commentary with the tense gothic horror that makes you want to keep turning the page. And Mia Farrow as the narrator was excellent and added to the vintage vibes of the book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

aingealwroth's review

dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

1.75

1.75*
While this hasn't aged the best (the problematic aspects of misogyny and racism are so harsh) it still has a place as a "classic" and the horror aspects hold up well. Granted, most of the horror is in the ending because Rosemary's psychotic break results with her in giving into the gaslighting, but alas, it's still horrifying. Has a stronger level of "eerie" than most horror stories that this spawned in the subgenre of "demonic kids" and is one of the better examples.

TLDR: Original movie held very close to the original material, just presented things as more subjective.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Alcohol, and Classism

stephanieanneauthor's review

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Believe it or not, I haven't seen the movie yet (but it is on my list). But movie or no movie, I had to give the book a try as I'm a fan of Levin's writing style. I will note that the sound quality of the audiobook is less than stellar, but other than that this book is phenomenal. 

As someone who's lived through it, I love stories that involve gaslighting as it adds to the tension and discomfort. And I wanted to scream at some of the obstacles Rosemary encountered. In those early chapters, I wasn't too sure how I would feel about her, but I came to love her character arc. I've also noticed recently that I tend to be more drawn to domestic horror stories. There's something delightfully unsettling about home life gone wrong, and situations that should be safe and comforting, but are not. 

Can't wait to watch the movie now!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Blood

Minor: Addiction, Homophobia, Miscarriage, and Abortion

b00murded's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infertility, Misogyny, Rape, Suicide, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Moderate: Death, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Confinement and Abortion

smolhandsdan's review

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment

bookbelle5_17's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

Review of Rosemary’s Baby

By: Ira Levin

            Rosemary and Guy are a young happy couple eager to move into the famous Bramford apartment.  When they move in, they meet this elderly couple, Roman and Mini Castavets, who are very willing to insert themselves in Rosemary and Guy’s lives.  Rosemary finally gets pregnant the Castavets help Rosemary with it, but she begins to suspect they have wicked intensions for her baby.

Rosemary’s Baby focuses not only on the occult and devil worship, but also on the fears of expecting mothers.  Am I harming my child before its born?  How do make I sure my baby is born good?  It is one of those horror stories where our protagonists’ sanity is put to the test and can any of the other characters can be trusted.  Rosemary is constantly gaslighted and is condescended to by her husband, Guy, and she is so submissive to him in most of the story.  The Castavets are written in a way that makes them seem like they mean well, but they’re trying too hard to be involved with Rosemary’s pregnancy, especially when she barely knows them.  The horror is written in a subtle way where the reader doesn’t know for sure of what’s going on.  I found myself getting frustrated with Rosemary, because I wanted her to stand up for herself and not trust the Castavets.  Unless you don’t believe in the devil, this possibility is absolutely terrifying, but also even if you don’t believe the idea of these, who do believe is quite frightening as well.  This is an older novel published in the 60s and has casual racist mentalities.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Suicide, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

carlytenille's review against another edition

challenging 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

bdingz's review

dark 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? It's complicated

3.75

I haven’t seen the film, but I know the basics of the story, so I wasn’t sure if I would get much out of the book. I was wrong! While some aspects of the story are dated (some casual racism and homophobia here and there), the relevant bits surprised me. 

The real horror story here is medical gaslighting!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Confinement, Blood, and Kidnapping

Minor: Ableism, Death, Homophobia, Racism, Vomit, and Religious bigotry

jaimc's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Murder

Minor: Confinement and Racism

kbaker45's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting