Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

59 reviews

eabhasinnott's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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

Great observation of grief, rage and gender norms surrounding those emotions 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

It's an important read. I recommend reading it all if you read it at all. Your opinion of it changes as you finish it

carmonicat's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? No

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

tetedump's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

cthulhu_calamari's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

I read this right after re-reading The Iliad, which is not as great as its expectations. This book gives so much deeper and resonant context and meaning to the Trojan War that it should be considered a required companion to its source. Greek myths were meant to evolve with their audience, and *this* is the form that should be considered canon in the current age. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and War

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Confinement

baobaebye's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

gkm00's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

civetta's review against another edition

challenging informative sad slow-paced

• 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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic

theothergrl's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book does a wonderful job of showing us how patriarchy harms both women and men. It's a retelling of Achilles' story of the Battle of Troy from the perspective of his bed slave, Briseis. Their horrific and very sad relationship is explored earnestly. It's not a story about love, it's about two people pushed into bed and how they grieve immense loss not together but side-by-side. In different ways they are both denied the ability to process these emotions. They both grapple with their anger at the wasteful and pointless reasons for their loss. The loneliness and pain they both experience come from two hands of the same body, patriarchy. I think the way this is shown so paralleled throughout story, not in comparison to one another, is what makes this such brilliant feminist literature.

And, of course considering everything else, this book is a wonderful example of how we can tell stories with even the extremes of sexual violence, and tell them well without gratuitousness nor overly graphic. I did not once feel that there was no need for a particular sex/rape scene, when they were there, it added to the story. 

The 3 main characters in this book are loveable (and 2 very much despiseable) in a very complicated and heart wrenching way. But you'll definately enjoy spending time with them and hearing their story, I would 100% recommend this book. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Alcohol, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Blood, and Abandonment

Minor: Child death, Infertility, Vomit, and Pregnancy

indigoimpulse's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

i actually really liked the fact that briseis wasn’t a perfect character and that she’s so judgemental of others around her, men and women alike - i feel like given her circumstances you can’t exactly expect her to act like a saint . her narration was very raw which i found gave her personality .

however the book promised me a story from briseis’ pov so i didn’t really appreciate so much of the book being taken up by achilles’ pov - this author writes grief excellently so his sections were great but it kind of took away from the fact that this was supposed to be briseis’ story . i don’t really think you can call this a feminist novel but i enjoyed it nonetheless 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

lottie1803's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Medical content, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and War