Reviews tagging 'Death'

Kill Switch by Penelope Douglas

17 reviews

emilynied's review against another edition

dark emotional tense 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? Yes

1.5

I'm sorry, I just don't get this book and it's MMC. Winter was the best part of this for me, so I'll start with her. I really loved the blindness representation and I think the author did a good job of making the story from her narrative realistic and still interesting. She isn't diminished as a role in the story because of her lack of vision and she was still capable of being part of the action and having an entire character arc revolve around her. I loved the descriptions of her dancing and feeling the music and sounds around her and I can't fault her for bringing a literal sociopath to his knees :)

I understand why readers enjoy dark romance and fictional romance so much - it's because it's not real. If it was real, we would probably all be questioning our sanity. I usually don't mind books like these, but I don't get the hype around Damon Torrance, I really don't. His background is dark and the things that he went through are horrible - it explains why he's so messed up in the brain. BUT, I don't think it justified most of the things that he did in the past and present timelines of this book. He tries to kill his best friends in the first book, in the second book he terrorizes all of them and now he's just forgiven. There are, of course, lingering effects and we do see that in this book, but I don't think it's enough. We start the story super abruptly with him getting control of Winter, her sister and her mother just out of no where in his quest to force Winter to be with him and I just think that's gross. He puts her in these weird situations and in my mind, controls her (not letting her leave the house, having security follow her around...). I was so turned off by the first part of this book because of that. I just couldn't fathom how we could go from this to a potential love story. 

But, it did happen. I will say, I was kind of convinced towards the end of the book because he felt like a different character and everyone just *forgot* about all the shit he did. The character development just wasn't there for me to explain the switch up. Also, I feel like there was so much of Damon in Kai/Banks' book, but none of them are super prevalent in this book - I would have loved to see more of the present dynamic between him and Banks after it's revealed that they're siblings but that was definitely lacking here. 

As far as the storytelling techniques, I think I'm getting a little tired of this series' flashbacks. They are about 50% of the book and particularly in this story, reading the past chapters was so exhausting because they just felt like fillers? I don't know exactly how to explain it but it feels like the present narrative is just waiting for the big reveals in the past, and until that happens, there's a lull in the story which got pretty dull. The present chapters relied too much on the past chapters in my opinion, which also contributed to the eh reading experience. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Death, and Sexual harassment

ale9417's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Grief, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, Child abuse, Bullying, Blood, and Adult/minor relationship

dkgreads's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Buckle up, buttercup, because this one’s got a SH*T TON of baggage to unpack. Definitely look at the content warnings before reading. It’s definitely the most emotional book of the series so far. I didn’t think we’d get quite the close up on Damon’s past as we did, but it definitely explains why he is the way he is. Having Winter be blind was a choice. I got annoyed pretty quickly at the amount of times her not being able to see was used as a terror tactic. And I was really curious how the two of them were going to have a happy ending, all things considered. Overall, I liked it more than the second book, but not quite as much as the first.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Medical content, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Infidelity, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Blood, Death, Bullying, Kidnapping, Drug use, and Alcohol

fevalente's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny inspiring reflective relaxing sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Rape, Gaslighting, Cursing, Ableism, Torture, Stalking, Self harm, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Incest, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Death and Animal death

theteamsreader's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

The best in the series.  A dark, sexy romance that actually IS dark and sexy.  Following the third horseman Damon Torrance as he begins to tear down Winter Ashby's life and family after the incident so many years ago, a surprising backstory and dive into these characters' minds reveals that what's on the surface is not as it seems.  Recommend to anyone with a dark and spicy read in mind with a surprisingly excellent plot, a larger found family than once realised before, and even further surprise in diversity, as to Winter's  character not being limited to her blind disability.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Rape, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Self harm

Minor: Car accident

jen1804's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

4.0

The character development of Damon in this book is mad. I’ve gone from despising the sick fuck that is Damon Torrance in book 1, still hating him through book 2 (albeit some crumbs are dropped in preparation for his book), and now after book 3 I see him as my baby who must be protected at all costs.
Damon has obviously committed a lot of really bad shit and we cannot excuse some of his behaviour, but this book does an excellent job of exploring his past trauma and layering the reasons behind his decisions. It is heartbreaking to read at times, nobody deserves the childhood that he had.
I absolutely adore his and Winter’s story, the secrecy of their earlier relationship when Winter didn’t know who he was, because he was scared she would hate him if he revealed his identity which is heartbreaking, but the scenes were so beautiful - the driving of the car, the motorcycle ride. I also love that they have this back story from when they were kids, with the fountain and the tree house and how it all comes full circle when they’re older.
I really loved the internal struggle between Winter and Damon, with the slow burn enemies to lovers and them finally giving into each other. I think it made it spicier at times too. I love that they are both each other’s downfalls and yet each other’s saviours. Damon’s confession of his feelings toward Winter  was so beautiful. And the fucking poem behind her name and then his tattoo of the decaying snowflake, omg send help I am dead. And the note he leaves her in fucking braille. Stop it!
The disability of Winter being blind is really beautifully explored in this book actually and I just loved it so freaking much. The descriptions of her listening to the rain, the snow, chef’s kiss, her feeling her sandpaper markers on the floor so that she can still dance and do what she loves. There’s kind of a story within this story of self acceptance and how Winter loves how her other senses are enhanced, she also doesn’t let it stop her from doing anything. There are definitely times when her blindness is taken advantage of don’t get me wrong, but I loved how Winter had people who were there for her and took care of her, being her eyes for her when she needed.
Add to the story how Damon finally gets his group of friends back and my heart is happy, thank god because by the end of book 2 I was feeling sad for him, he needs them! Though perhaps he defo needed to do more grovelling than he did…
I loved the further layers about Damon and Will’s friendship too. I think the scene of the car underwater and Will essentially having a panic attack as it brought back the trauma of drowning in the first book was really beautifully done too, with him being calmed by both Damon and Winter. And Damon’s inner turmoil about what his friend has been through knowing that he’s responsible.
Overall a really good book with some extremely complex themes. It’s not a 5/5 for me but it gets a well rounded 4.
Satisfactory ending? Yes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Car accident, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Self harm, and Sexism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Ableism, Abandonment, Blood, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Rape, Toxic relationship, Addiction, and Panic attacks/disorders

kodafaith's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-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

6/5 stars!!!
I knew reading Corrupt that I was going to fall in love with Damon when i finally got to him because I KNEW there was something under the surface and UGH MY HEART!!!

This one just tore me up and no it’s not just because I love tall, dark, bad boys but because we actually see into his soul and then we see Winter and her strength and wow

I knew going in that this was most people’s favorite book but I was still amazed by how much I fell for these characters and this story.

This is easily one of my favorite series of all time in all genres at this point. Just wow.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Toxic relationship, Death, Incest, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Murder, Rape, Self harm, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, and Bullying

jsumner1125's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.0

I don't know why I like this series.  Damon was a horrible guy and I really didn't see any redemption for him that I could be satisfied with but he may be my favorite character now.  Totally selfish unless you are his people.   He had to have super special love and Winter was perfect. I loved how he treated her disability as a non issue, he let her truly live.  I am really liking the growth of all the charcters, the town story line of wealth and intrigue and I am super excited to finish with Will's story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Death of parent, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Alcohol, and Domestic abuse

coligmueller's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Car accident, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cursing, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child abuse, Confinement, Incest, Kidnapping, Misogyny, and Sexual harassment

lauraeerika's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

1.0

i don’t think i can call this entertainment anymore this is more like torture but it’s still better than corrupt 😀

some of the stuff in this book just felt so wrong… so wrong

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Death of parent, Vomit, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Pregnancy and Self harm

Minor: Incest