Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

155 reviews

tintinreaney's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Sexual content, and Grief

Minor: Suicide

naoml's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

This is masterful. This is a beautiful critic of what voices are deemed important. How are people remembered? Who gets to tell the stories? Is it even possible to know a full truth?

The story follows the myth of Achilles but for once not through his eyes or the eyes of someone who adores him. We see that "heroism" is sometimes simply violence, depending on the lens you are viewing it through. However, this also gives us the nuance of sometimes evil doesn't always look that way, and even worse: not everything and evil person does is bad. Humanity is more complex than that, and you own no one forgiveness based on a single action or moment.

I can't fully put into words my thoughts and feelings on it, but I do know that it is incredible. The story will keep permeating my thoughts for a long time to come. 

**please read the trigger warnings

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

savage_book_review's review against another edition

challenging 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? It's complicated

4.5

The voices of Achilles, Patroclus, Agamemnon, Odysseyus, Ajax and all of the other heroes (or villains depending on your allegiances) of the Trojan War have echoed down the millenia into myth and legend. But what about those silent women, orphaned and widowed by a war they had no part in starting and forced into serving the men who took the lives of their loved ones? Briseis' name is well known, but her story? Well, for once, let the tale not be told by the victor, but the victim.

One day I'll find a Greek myth retelling I don't like. But today is not that day. This is beautifully written; lyrical, heartfelt, epic prose that runs over with emotion and buries its way into your consciousness. It's not poetry, but it is definitely poetic and so feels like it has almost perfect tone to complement the source material. There is something about the best authors writing these retellings (Madeline Miller and Jennifer Saint to name but two); they all have their own style, but they all embody this same tone in their work. So as soon as I 'felt' it, I knew I was in for a good read!

The only caveat to this praise is that there are moments where speech sounds almost too modern. I understand that it's meant to be soldiers talking in their own rough and ready way, but there was something about certain turns of phrase that jolted me out of the serene state the rest of the writing put me in. I'm all for a good round of turning the air blue, but even the cursing felt out of place in certain moments. It all still works and doesn't ruin the story or the flow, but I think the rest of the story feels so authentic the modern parlance sticks out like a sore thumb.

Each character is wonderfully rendered; Briseis herself comes across as a strong, capable woman, utterly defeated by circumstances, resigned to her fate and yet still with an independent streak that means while she might bend, she won't break. Her interactions with Achilles manage to find that sweet spot, where he is neither slave master that sees her as nothing but chattel, nor the dashing romantic hero that she can't help but fall in love with. It's a fabulous rendering of their relationship. Patroclus does come across a little more as the sweet, shy boy who befriends the slaves rather than beats them, but it's a great contrast to the rest of the Greek warriors. While the nature of Achilles and Patroclus' relationship is never explicitly stated, the small illustrations of their love for one another, whether platonic or romantic, are just gorgeous. Once again, I found myself hoping that the author might just flip the myth on its head... and this in a book that's not meant to be as sympathetic to them!

The book also conveys the harsh realities of 10 years living in a war camp and the bloodiness of battle, without being overly graphic or sensationalist. It's atmospheric and not pleasant at times, but it's never difficult to read.

There is a dual POV set up, alternating chapters between Briseis in the first person, and Achilles in the third. Switching between first and third person is one of the writing devices I struggle with, and yet it STILL manages to flow and keep me engaged.

This book deserves its accolades and is one I would definitely recommend. Book two is on order at the library, so I'll look forward to continuing this series soon!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Homophobia, Sexual content, Excrement, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Classism

void_uwulucinda's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

clemireads's review against another edition

emotional informative slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Death, Blood, Grief, and Pregnancy

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

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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

natasza'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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I just finished reading this book and I needed good 10 minutes to reset and lay on my couch. What an incredible but tragic story. I highly recommend it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and War

ylimets's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring sad slow-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and War

Moderate: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Suicide attempt, 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. 

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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

pagesofplatypus's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

A riveting tale of the Battle of Troy through the eyes of Brisies, slave to Achilles. In an era of Greek myth retellings with a feminist twist, this one sits in the top. The stories of the women taken captive by the Greeks are all varied and equally gripping and understandable in each woman's reaction to her situation.

The chapters are mainly from Brisies' pov, which I found to be the most interesting, but a few were from third-person pov mainly centering on Achilles. These chapters were also very different and engaging because it shows Achilles in a very different light than what many may typically view him and his story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child death