Reviews tagging 'Violence'

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by

122 reviews

dezzella's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.75 to 5 Stars.


I really liked this book, it really hit me right. There are darker themes but I think the trauma and healing was handled very well. I really loved watching our main character start to move forward, while getting wrapped up in the drama of his husband's home kingdom.

There's an arranged marriage (semi marriage of convenience, if convenience for the good of the two kingdoms counts) and murder mystery. Plus lots of underlying plots playing out. I enjoyed the pacing and writing and I really into the story the whole way. I will certainly be continuing and reading the next in the series.

(Content warnings, sorry if I missed a few on page SA/Rape, PTSD, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, some violence, some torture)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Death, Torture, Violence, and Gaslighting

anderska1011's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Outing

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, and Fire/Fire injury

xandry's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, and Xenophobia

seashel's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A wonderful husbands-to-friends-to-lovers 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Outing, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Hate crime, Sexism, Medical content, Stalking, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Torture, Transphobia, Abandonment, and Classism

stormcatt's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

Moderate: Self harm and Violence

Minor: Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Transphobia

piperclover's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-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

4.25

I'm shocked at how much I like this. I immediately started the second book after ending this one bc I liked it so much. I'm still struggling to keep names, places, and political positions straight since the names are so foreign and I can't see them written. The sensitivity and depth of the exploration of Vel's >!rape and subsequent trauma feel heartfelt and genuine. The author handed it with such care and touched in all the points that society pushes on rape/sexual assault victims. The rape scene is graphic and long and told in full color toward the beginning which really freaked me out and made me consider dnfing but I'm so glad I pushed through it and continued.!<

The romance between Vel and Cae is utterly delightful despite the harsh circumstances. The ending was explosive. At first I was really annoyed that >!the mastermind behind the attacks on Vel was Cae's younger sister Lacia (idk how to spell it) but when it was revealed that the Yassa/their grandmother had favored Lacia for her position and that their father favored her for his position the whole time, I was pleasantly surprised and ok with it.!<

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

reellyfish's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

I really liked the story and the characters. Absolutely loved Markel. I also enjoyed the dark themes (TW) of rape, SH, and suicidal ideation and the effects of those.

There was a typo saying “What I have I done?” during quite an intense scene that kinda took me out scene but I was still able to understand what was trying to be said.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Infidelity

pretzel_witch's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Classism

kathyq10's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious slow-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? No

4.0

Overall I enjoyed this read a lot. The relationship between Cae and Vel is so sweet and lovely. The development is well written and a delicious slow burn, so much so that when they first HUG it feels huge and incredibly intimate. In turn their first kiss and first other things are a culmination of all that steamy and emotional buildup, plus healthy communication!! Gasp! The worldbuilding is well done in terms of the creative gender and sexuality norms—super refreshing in fantasy novels that are usually very binary—but I found the magic system a bit boring, underdeveloped, and underutilized. I thought this book was going to be a fantasy, but the magic feels like an afterthought and only really comes up as a plot point (rather conveniently) towards the end. The more fantastical element is really the progressive society, and I would’ve been just as happy without the magic at all. 
As for negatives, the pace was slooooow. The bulk of the book takes place over like a week and a LOT happens each day. The characters acknowledge the density of the action, though, which makes it a bit better I guess. I just wanted it to move along at a faster clip. But then the solving of the mystery, reveal of the big baddie, and the consequences to them all happen pretty quickly and didn’t resolve in a satisfying way to me. I don’t think it did justice to the complexities of that character’s motivations. I cared much more about the main romantic relationship, Cae’s and Vel’s relationships with their respective close friends, and character development overall than the plot or the intrigue, so I honestly skipped some of the parts where they were bouncing around the town trying to solve the mystery of it all. 
MAJOR CW for sexual violence and attempted suicide right from the very beginning of the book. The author puts this in a CW at the start but I didn’t expect it all to happen quite so fast. As the author says, though, it is a story about healing from the initial trauma. 
Finally shoutout to MARKEL, Vel’s bestie and the absolute best supporting character. Markel is an icon and a messy bitch and I hope we get more of him in the sequel. His friendship with Vel was the second best part of the book; I love to see an unselfconscious portrayal of male friendship and intimacy. Plus the integration of the fact that he speaks sign language felt very natural and something I’ve never seen in a fantasy novel like this before. 
Thank you Foz!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Outing

Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

bespectacled_lemur's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, Outing, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Outing, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Outing, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail