Reviews tagging 'Torture'

They Never Learn by Layne Fargo

14 reviews

readingpicnic's review against another edition

4.5

Okay I love this genre of woman punishing men for their abuse, in the realm of Sadie and The Female of the Species, but this one being more new adult/adult. I absolutely did not see the twist coming halfway through

with Scarlet and Carly being the same person, and I was truly flabbergasted, slack-jawed, distraught even.

I knew that dumbass

red diary

was going to screw things up, but I’m so happy with the ending. They’re adorable <3 The audiobook narration was chilling.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Biphobia, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Fire/Fire injury

assesgrass's review against another edition

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

5.0

Unbelievably good. 

I don't state that lightly, this had flaws but none of the flaws could have taken away the rating I gave this. 

Carly, a young woman in her first year away from her abusive father, gets paired into a dorm with a older student; Allison. She's everything Carly wants to be, and Carly is protective. 

Scarlett, a English professor with a hidden motive, she's a murderer. Not just anyone however, men who deserve it. 

I loved the LGBTQAI+ representation, and it wasn't portrayed as taboo like some books do it. The characters were unique, I especially loved Mikayla and Wes, both well written background/side characters with bigger roles near the ending. 

I did not expect that twist half way through and i am honestly so surprised, it's so different. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

hxlleann's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

emsxrenee's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

kitandink's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

well! 

also, hell of a plot twist

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Biphobia, Cursing, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Mass/school shootings, and Toxic friendship

otterlyawesome915's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

noshinbean's review against another edition

dark tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide, and Torture

msradiosilence's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

3.0

TLDR; 3 rating, I love women’s wrongs, I love queer women, but there is something missing here.

Content warnings at the bottom. :)

I am a sucker for bisexual female main characters, and this one kills men who hurt women?? It sounded so far up my alley. I went in hoping Scarlett and Carly would team up and take down all the horrible men on Gorman’s campus but that’s just…not exactly what happened.

So Scarlett and Carly are the same person. I figured that out just a little bit before the reveal, so cheers!

I really appreciated Carly’s arc, but because the time was ambiguous, the four or five page chapters and then the switches back and forth between Carly and Scarlett did give me whiplash in a few places. I understand why (to keep you on the edge of your seats during tense moments) but there was something lost in the back and forth. 

I’ve seen a lot of people complain about how there’s quite literally a single man in this book who is a genuinely good guy, and it’s sort of explained away because he’s gay. I think people pointing this out are missing the fact that Scarlett is a horrendously unreliable narrator. Someone described this as genderbent American Psycho, and while I’ve never read that book, I’ve seen plenty of reviewers who bite back at incel misogynists who look up to Patrick Bateman enough to realize that the comparison is likely an apt one. Scarlett is so consumed with her belief that men ain’t shit, and while it’s very likely the men she kills haven’t committed crimes egregious enough for the reader to sentence them to death, Scarlett’s had enough. She reads a lot into situations, often colored by her own trauma, and since this is from her perspective, we should take her observations with a grain of salt (in most cases). With the exception of Drew, all the men in this book read as horrible predators, and we as the audience only have Scarlett to rely on until another character confirms it (Mina with Kinnear,

Mikayla with Jasper

, jury’s still out on Stright). But whether you believe Scarlett or not, the point is she’s unreliable, but these men are still pretty awful.

And that’s the point, isn’t it? It’s a cautionary tale against trust, because it’s not always the ones you don’t know. Scarlett is a dream, and one that I’ve heard quite a few of my friends echo. Because even in the year of our lorde 2023, the doctors and the deans in Carly’s storyline are still saying the same shit. I saw it happen in undergrad to friends of mine. We have a long, long way to go before the events in this book are only the work of fiction.

Anyway. I thought the book was fine but it didn’t change my life. So, solid three stars.

Rating: 3

Would I recommend? A tentative yes, but mostly for the TWs and content.

Content warnings: Graphic: Fire, Sexual violence, Stalking, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Gore, Grief, Sexism, Cursing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content (about sexual assault), Sexual content (on page, consensual), Sexual harassment, Blood, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual assault, and Violence. Moderate: Death of parent, Rape (mentioned, not on page), Alcohol, Domestic abuse, and Suicide (mentioned). Minor: Torture (mentioned), Car accident, and Drug use

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Suicide, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Drug use, Torture, and Car accident

itsalina's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Torture and Death of parent

marisasbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Sexual harassment