Reviews tagging 'Gore'

Human Acts by Han Kang

70 reviews

bolgenhaar'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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction and Alcohol

sdloomer's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.0

This is not for the faint of heart, with its fairly graphic descriptions of torture and military brutality. 

In preparation for my upcoming trip to Korea, I decided to set aside some books on Korean history, fiction, and works written by Korean authors; this one did not disappoint and I was very deeply interested to learn about the Gwangju uprising of 1980. In America, Korean history is something that is only really glossed over in favor of western countries' - except for the Korean War - and I am ashamed to say, as a Korean American, that I have virtually no knowledge of my home country's past. I am hoping to rectify that with reading as much as I can get my hands om, starting with this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Suicide

eva_vva's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Sexism, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Infertility, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Excrement, Medical trauma, and Sexual harassment

lynxpardinus's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cancer, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Excrement, Vomit, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

Minor: Genocide

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Police brutality, and War

terry_v's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, and Grief

dreamingpages'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? Yes

4.0

This book is heartbreaking. Check the trigger warnings before reading.

I knew nothing about the Gwangju Uprising or the labor movement in South Korea before reading this book. It was really eye opening to see the hardships South Korea has faced in recent history. 

Each chapter of this book takes place from a different character's perspective, each loosely tied to a central character: a boy who was killed during the Uprising. The chapters expand out in time, from 1980 to 2013. Choosing to write the book in this way encapsulates how these events ripple through time and S. Korean society; trauma like this doesn't just go away.

Han Kang examines the sheer staggering human capacity for cruelty and questions the existence of the soul. I cried several times and felt this book in my core.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Police brutality, Grief, and Murder

petals4pages's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

2.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Police brutality, and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Self harm

emerentina's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

georgw's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

2.0

It's a well-written novel but it's not my genre. I also think it's a bit weird to mix historical tales of horror and torture with ghost stories and spiritualism. I want to learn more about this event but with the mix of fact and fiction I'd do better just reading Wikipedia.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, and Sexual violence

Minor: Rape and Suicide