Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

177 reviews

dorisko's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.0

IT’S FINALLY OVER.
Overrated, too long, boring and stiff. So many times I almost put that book down. It was kinda fun until halfway when

they killed Bunny.

After that everything went downhill. NOT ONE of the characters was likeable. They weren’t even morally grey, they were just boring pompous assholes. The book doesn’t know what it wants to be. It’s not a murder mystery, it’s not found family, it’s certainly not dark academia because these idiots never study, and even if they do they have nothing interesting to say about their field of studies. Also to make the most boring and bland character the narrator was certainly a choice.
Seriously why did I keep reading, I should have DNF this book halfway.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Murder

Moderate: Homophobia and Incest

buzzybuzzybeefudge's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

3.0

I wanted to hate this book, but I couldn't. It was too gripping and it was really fun to listen to on audiobook. Some of the prose was genuinely gorgeous. I am allowed to gag at the ending though because I personally loathe "this is what happened to all the characters" endings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Incest, and Vomit

Minor: Animal death

hilariescudero's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicide, and Murder

Moderate: Homophobia, Incest, Vomit, and Antisemitism

genhol's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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? Yes

4.5

This book was beautifully written, heartbreaking and repulsive all at the same time. The beginning is quite slow and seems very peaceful but do not let that fool you. It is not a peaceful book. Twists and turns are well spaced out and surprised me throughout the book, although I am impressed how upon reflection they were incredibly well foreshadowed. It certainly keeps you guessing until the very end. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Incest, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Grief, and Gaslighting

Minor: Eating disorder and Rape

madalina0_0's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

lindsfindley's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Biphobia, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Islamophobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

I

roaming_enn's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Does such a thing as "the fatal flaw," that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside of literature? It used to think it didn't. Now I think it does. And I think mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.

Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like t he Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely? To throw off the chains of being for an instant, to shatter the accident of our mortal selves?

Summary:
This book is about a bunch of Ancient Greek undergraduate students and that time they murdered one of their classmates. The one who dies is revealed in the beginning, and it is the HOW they get there that's the real story. The story is told in first-person through Richard Papen's POV, a newest Greek student that the professor accepts, newest member of the group that had been together for longer. He is writing just under a decade after the events of the book. 

Thoughts:
I love how academic it was, and it feels like a book written by an academic (which it was) for other academics. The author doesn't hold your hand, assuming you're smart enough to follow the story with what she gives you. There was at least one scene that I thought was entirely unnecessary for the Islamophobia it spewed, and I'm still not sure why it was included. The ending was a little disappointing because I wanted things to be a particular way but they ended up not. I wish it had been more than just a handful of years later when the story is told, rather than Richard still being a young man. But in either case, a lot of people seem to hate this book. I loved it. I don't love the characters, but I found them, and the story, REALLY compelling. And for me, that makes up for not loving the characters. 

Be sure to check all the content warnings. I tried to include as many as I could think of in this review. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Murder

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Islamophobia

Minor: Cursing, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Vomit, and Antisemitism

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I loved The Goldfinch and was expecting to love this one too, but instead, I’m unclear why this book was such a big deal. The whole time, I keep wondering if this book inspired Shonda Rhimes into How to Get Away with Murder, and like that TV show, I hated the premise of the plot and still watched every episode and read every page, and in the end, all I am left is to wonder why I did.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

helena_buchwelt's review against another edition

funny mysterious medium-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

Minor: Homophobia, Incest, Vomit, and Antisemitism

singalana's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

This book was different from what I expected. I hope I would have taken my time with it and read it more slowly and thoughtfully, but alas, it was from the library, and I was pressed to return it.

From the blurb, I expected this book to be different: I expected the professor to play a more significant part and the group of students to be almost like a secret society of sorts (hence the name). I expected more action, crimes, and violence, but that was not the case. I’d characterise The Secret History as a slow-burn psychological thriller. It’s Donna Tartt’s debut novel, but you’d never guess it from the writing.

Our main character, Richard, comes from a humble background and tries to get away from his family. He gets into college in Vermont, where he gets a place in a small group studying under a classics professor. Slowly, he gets to know the other students better and better and becomes entangled in something that changes his life forever. 

The characters have distinct personalities, and the author describes them in a way that makes them easy to picture. The writing flows quite nicely, and I found it pleasant to read. The events flow at a slow, almost dreamlike pace, and I, as a reader, find myself in the main character’s head, almost like a passenger, watching the events unfold.

Plotwise, I don’t have much to critique. I suppose my main gripe about this book is that it’s rather long. But perhaps if I had read it at a more leisurely pace, then the dreamlike quality of the events would have clashed so much with my “need for speed”. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Death, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail