alishamegan's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
if masses of people misinterpret your book for exactly the opposite message of what you as the author intended maybe it is not a good enough book to convey that message?
if society has not reached that level of collective consciousness where they would read lolita and automatically condemn the abuser and rally around the victim-survivor then maybe it needs to be more EXPLICITLY anti-CSA and supportive of the victim?
THIS book is that. By being from the perspective of the girl child (and later woman) and her being a complicated, 'imperfect' (whatever that and whatever 'perfect' is meant to be) victim-survivor it gives a real, grounded narrative and experience.
I felt sick reading this but I could not stop reading it constantly. It also made me angry.
Spoiler
I wanted the man to die and he did so that felt good.men are so $%^$%&$^*"^%^$%^5 URGH like FUCK OFF YOU CREEP
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
rebekka's review
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Rape, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexism, Gaslighting, Drug use, Drug abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Violence, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pedophilia, Misogyny, Vomit, Mental illness, Grief, Death, and Cursing
bookishchristiana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is a very sensitive book so I don't feel like I can give it my usual length or style of review. Essentially, this book is a modern kind-of Lolita except from the victim's perspective. It is very heavy and hard to get through; despite this I absolutely give it 5 stars. I finished this book I think about two weeks ago now but I had to sit with it a bit before writing a review. Although I am not a writer, I can see that writing this kind of book with sensitivity must be incredibly hard. There are so many parts of this book that had my skin crawling or full of anger. It's hard to put into words how exactly this book made me feel inside. It definitely elicited the feelings that Russell intended. DO NOT read this book if you cannot read about abuse, grooming, or non-consent. My Dark Vanessa seems to capture the feelings and experiences of a victim of grooming perfectly. Despite Vanessa's actions being endlessly frustrating and stress-inducing, I understood that this is how many people who have been groomed react (although I cannot speak for them as this is not my story to weigh in on). It is a very tough read and at times I hated it. Having to read the abuse was awful and, in some ways, I think parts could have been referred to rather than written so explicitly. I think there is a risk of certain explicit scenes that are written to depict the horrible actions of the groomer run the risk of being read by real-life groomers too. It makes me severely uncomfortable to think that someone may take the wrong things away from this book. At the same time though, perhaps such scenes needed to be written so as to properly demonstrate Vanessa's state as a character. I'm in two minds. Notwithstanding this, I still want to give this book 5 stars as I think it is something that will stick with me for the rest of my life. The writing and portrayal of a victim of grooming is impeccable. It is truly a much better portrayal of grooming (centring the victim's story) than Lolita ever could be. Do not read Lolita, read this (although, again, read the trigger warnings). It may have been hard, but I am thoroughly glad I read it. - C x
Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexism, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Sexual violence
mayarodriguez's review
5.0
Graphic: Sexism, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Vomit, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Pedophilia, Rape, Stalking, and Sexual assault
itsdanibee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Sexism, Sexual content, Child abuse, Grief, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Drug use, Death, Misogyny, and Sexual violence
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Vomit, and Suicidal thoughts
anonymous_traveller's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Eating disorder, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Child abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Self harm, Physical abuse, Sexism, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Sexual violence, Stalking, Ableism, Abandonment, Rape, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
nora_pears's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness, Alcohol, Grief, Sexism, and Suicide
Minor: Death, Drug use, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, and Animal death
ratrug's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It definitely captured a lot of the feeling that the event permeates your whole life afterwards.
Spoiler
I sort of wish it further explored Taylor and Vanessa - maybe lingered a little longer on the conversation about how different experiences may or may not be ‘worse’ than each other.Never felt more of a woman
Overall a very good book. I can see myself rereading it but definitely not for a long time. Don’t underestimate how hard it is to read.
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Child abuse
woolfinbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Sexism
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Stalking, Car accident, Animal death, and Suicide
Minor: Vomit and Abandonment
There is student/teacher sexual abuse that is challenged in different ways throughout the book. A major part of the plot is seeing the sexual abuse develop, the victim romanticizing what happened, refusing to hold her abuser accountable due to gaslighting, and not wanting to come to turns with what happened.fir3opal's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Sexism, and Death
Moderate: Suicide