Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

18 reviews

leonormsousa's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

nodogsonthemoon's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

bandysbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I think one of the reasons that it took so long for there to be a follow-up to The Handmaid’s Tale is just that it’s such a difficult story to do justice to. I tried to go into The Testaments with tempered expectations and I think that was helpful. This book is definitely solid, but definitely not as haunting as the original. 

The story follows three different POV characters as we learn what happens after Offred’s testimony. I thought this was an effective way to show a lot of progression in a lot of different places without making the book 1000 pages. 

I will say that while it did provide closure, it didn’t have the same emotional impact as HT. I did appreciate the resolution with some of the older characters like Aunt Lydia.

If you’re considering this series, I’d suggest:
Read Handmaid’s Tale
Watch The Handmaid’s Tale tv series
Finish with The Testaments

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail

lectricefeministe's review against another edition

hopeful tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Genocide, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, War, and Classism

ericarao's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Suicide, Kidnapping, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child abuse and War

uhm_kai's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

Profound but horribly real. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

anything's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Murder

vicanarc_'s review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-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

2.5

This is not a prequel book. And that's not the author fault but rather the marketing's, because i've started this book thinking  it would go into how Gilead started, and while it is mentioned, that's not the point of the book. So, if you're looking for Gilead's lore, you'll be disappointed.
After all, this is not too different from "The Handmaid's Tale", except we see differents POVs.
The book was okay, but while I want to love Atwood with all of my heart for being such a crucial feminist writer, this is my third book I read from her and they were all just mediocre for me. I hate to admit she's not the auther for me.

We get a redemption arc for aunt Lydia I didn't like. Can some characters just be evil, please? Can i just hate dangerously mysogynystic people without feeling bad?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Murder