Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Jeskyně zatracených by Caitlin Starling

14 reviews

librarymouse's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

The Luminous Dead calls into question the reliability of its characters' perception and creates such a thick fog of paranoia and confusion that it remains tangible even after the end of the novel. Both characters are terrible people who are terrible to each other.

I don't really know that this was the case, but my interpretation of events is that the tunneler was using the likenesses of those who died in the tunnel's depths to lure victims to reveal themselves. However, Gyre's fever, the spores, and the general paranoia of her time in the tunnels makes it unprovable. Gyre feeling herself be dragged by the sporified corpse of Jenny reinforces that uncertainty of reality. Especially with the pull of the depths like the call of the void made manifest. Em is a terrible person. Sympathetic, but still terrible. She killed so many people in the search of corpses she wasn't sure would still be there, and ran when Gyre found them. They're so toxic for each other - Gyre holding the kill switch to Em's livelihood and future and Em having broken Gyre's body and mind. Not to mention Gyre's willingness to mutilate herself for the sake of getting a job for the money to get off planet and find the mother who abandoned her and whom she grows to hate, and Em's willingness to desecrate her mother's memory by sending caver after caver down into the depths that swallowed her parents, only to turn away and leave Gyer alone in the dark when her father's body is found. They're terrible people and terrible for each other, but in this sort of off world horror, you kind of have to root for them.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Medical content

brioches22's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Blood, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

zakura317's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad 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? Yes

2.5

Meandering would be a kind way to describe this book. And the two leads have an incredibly toxic and dangerous relationship.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

concertconfetti's review against another edition

While the character relationships are interesting, I feel like both of them are going in such tight circles around each other. The suspension of belief that the main character would every trust Em is too much - they never seem to build up enough trust to properly hit beats, and I come away from each chapter exasperated with the both of them. It's a thrilling concept, but not for me. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Gaslighting

smolo1993's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes

1.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement and Emotional abuse

yuyuv's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Abandonment

ladyinverse's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, and Abandonment

Minor: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Medical trauma

fictionalportal's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

Coming back to add to this review almost eight months after reading the book because I still think about this story. It's an absolutely haunting meditation on grief and the havoc it can wreak on the human psyche. Safe to say I never left the cave besties <3

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

boglord's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Colonisation

charley34's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail