Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Master of Salt & Bones by Keri Lake

28 reviews

that_casshole's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

Please heed the content warnings. It was very predictable and followed the typical dark romance plot lines. Which is fine IF you have a good plot. The idea for the plot was there, but it was horribly predictable. I guessed about 95% of the “big reveals” about a quarter into the book. The spicy scenes got boring fast. If you’ve got some time, it’s a fine read, but if your tbr looks like mine, wait on this one. I definitely had to make myself keep reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, and Stalking

Minor: Gaslighting

ewindtberg's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this book. The gothic romance style in which it was written (with a beauty and the beast/phantom of the opera feel), the spice was on point, even when the MCs made dumb decisions sometimes you still connected with them and felt for them, and there were twists and turns that I didn’t expect (and some that I did). All in all this was a great read and I liked it so much I made my bookclub read it for October lol also, the way it ends leaves it open to a possible second book with I hope the author strongly considers as some things were left as lose ends. I would LOVE for this to be a duology.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

buildingourbookshelves's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse and Torture

Moderate: Child death and Rape

xoxo_bookishbabe's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

4.5

Keri Lake is truly a master of her craft with the way she layers her stories with mystery, secrets, and various dark elements. She creates something so deliciously dark and beautiful that I find myself enthralled, unable to get enough. 

I’m perhaps a bit too good at piecing together mysteries, though, because I did find some of the twists of the story to be predictable. But, truly if you’re paying attention, it’s easy to pick up on the clues for when the twist is revealed later. This isn’t a point of contention for me because I still very much enjoyed the book. 

If you’re a dark romance, romantic suspense, etc reader and you haven’t read Keri Lake, I’m assuming you live under a rock. She just knows how to write ‘em and this book was no exception. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

sm_ash's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I dont know how a book can move so slowly for half the book, then at the speed of light the next. 
I still have quite a few unanswered questions, which just leave me feeling so unsatisfied

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use

aklovekorn's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

kat1105's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

lauraleafromthelibrary's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

Holy shit, I finished a book. AND, holy shit this book was dark but I loved it. Loved the age gap romance and the two main characters. Surprises galore. Did I mention it was dark? Check out the content warnings for sure. I will be reading more of this author.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

helenxhan's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

so fucked up but i love it 
trigger warnings should have been mentioned at the beginning but when you like fucked up dark romances and characters with a tragic background it's the perfect book for you

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Torture and Pregnancy

jojothepittboss's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

I loved this. Dark and tantalizing, mysterious and heart felt, desperation and obsession. Check trigger warnings ⚠️ this is not for the faint of heart nor for those looking for a fluffy romance. This was truly captivating and I was lost to the world around me as I read well into the wee hours of the morning. It kept me up at night, thinking about it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, and Torture

Moderate: Child death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use