Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

The Return by Rachel Harrison

6 reviews

cursivewolf's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.0

actually had me weeping.
grief and guilt are both monsters

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Body horror, Cannibalism, Car accident, Death, Eating disorder, and Gore

Moderate: Vomit

Minor: Cancer and Eating disorder

livlamentloathe's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.0

I think this story got ahead of itself. It told more than it showed. And I don’t even quite understand what happened? Was it paranormal? Supernatural? What? I’m unsure. It felt on the cusp of something but kept eating away at odd backstories instead of revealing the truth. Very repetitive. I wanted it to be much more than it was.

And I set myself up for that too. I was trying to predict the twist. In actuality, there wasn’t enough there. A lot of hyped up secrets only for them to fall flat. A lot of build up only to blow away in the wind. And it was so close to queer but was not, my biggest disappointment of all. Don’t hope for surprise lesbians, you will be disappointed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Blood

Moderate: Gore, Toxic friendship, Classism, Stalking, Infidelity, Death, Eating disorder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Car accident and Cancer

ktdakotareads's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Medical content, Medical trauma, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Stalking, Grief, Abandonment, and Infidelity

traa's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death, Murder, Mental illness, Alcohol, Grief, Cannibalism, Gore, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Stalking, and Violence

Moderate: Car accident, Fatphobia, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Ableism, Body shaming, Toxic friendship, Eating disorder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Racism, Bullying, and Xenophobia

lovesit1892's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book exceeded all of my expectations. After being drawn to the neon pink cover at B&N, I was surprised to read that the synopsis sounded similar to one of my favorite movies, Jennifer's Body, so I couldn't resist. I'm usually more of a gothic horror girl than contemporary horror, so I went into this book not knowing how much I would like it, but it blew me away. It is like Jennifer's Body, but somehow even more eerie.

There was a line in this book that gave me literal chills, and as a ghosty, ghouly, macabre-loving weirdo, that never happens to me while reading books. The small, blink-and-you'll-miss-them details that give a sense of something being "off" were so subtle and perfectly placed that it kept the creeping dread slowly escalating throughout the entire book. The setting felt so realistic--from

Spoiler

the try-hard, trendy/creepy boutique hotel to the dreary New England weather--that it was easy to imagine all of the absolutely unhinged occurrences actually happening.

Spoiler

I don't normally like dialogue driven books, especially centering around a young adult friend group like this one (the friendship dynamic usually feels forced and cheesy), but Harrison does a superb job of showcasing the individual voice and personality of each character. She really captures the emotions and growing pains that these women go through while navigating their friend's disappearance and subsequent "return," and the strain that it puts on their friendships. This is a great narrative on grief, friendship, growing pains, and social dynamics told through the lens of contemporary horror. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Eating disorder, Body horror, and Gore

Moderate: Vomit

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Cancer, Death of parent, and Stalking

little102red's review against another edition

mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, and Infidelity