Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

396 reviews

zulmiro's review

dark sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Racism, Police brutality, and Stalking

blackeyedraptor's review

challenging dark funny fast-paced

4.0

A great, quick read for those interested in solving mysteries or delving into complicated family relationships.
I love that this was not in America or Europe, but in Africa, as the author really delves into her roots and culture.
The main character was incredibly rounded as she deals with the conflict of wanting to protect her sister, who is an extreme narcissist and serial killer, and also wanting her sister to face the music. 
It definitely did not end the way I thought it would, which was super refreshing! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Murder

Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Blood

kayladarthur's review

medium-paced

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

3.0

Disclaimer: this is a ramble, not a review! 

I reallllly wanted to like this book. They had me in the first half, yknow? The scene was set, we’ve got this whole mystery thing set up n whatnot. I was sat. ‹spoiler› But then nothing happened. We open with Korede, who hates her sister and does nothing about her own mistreatment. She never stands up for herself, and continues to stew in resentment for most of the book until the VERY end, where she randomly decides that she loves her sister. But there’s no catalyst for that — no moment where the two sisters talk things out, or see eye to eye. There’s nothing that Ayoola does that makes Korede rethink things, she’s just presented with a choice. Speaking of Ayoola, I wish we’d gotten more of her point of view. She’s presented as this one-dimensional character, whose character traits are pretty and aloof. Who is she? And how else does she act like a sociopath besides being indifferent?  And WHAT MAKES HER KILL PEOPLE??? I thought we’d get some more insight into her childhood and how that influenced her mental health. I thought at the very least that she killed their dad, and that’s what started all this. Nope. And also, we never learn about the actual killings, and what happened. We never know exactly how things went down, or whether or not Ayoola was lying about the events that occurred. Additionally, I hate to see two women fighting over any man, let alone one whose only personality trait is that he’s nice. And how does Korede love a man she only speaks to (sometimes) at work? ‹/spoiler› There’s lots more that I can say, but in closing: I just wish the plot were more dynamic, and that the characters were multidimensional. I wanted more from this story 😫

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Murder and Sexual harassment

iloponis's review

3.0

honestly idk! idk how i feel about it! fun read but felt somewhat insubstantial 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, and Violence

laurel_leaves1023's review

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Medical content, Murder, and Gaslighting

pacifickat's review against another edition

dark 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

4.5

Enjoyable shorter read that pulled me in from start to finish. I like that it was told largely through little vingetes from the sister Korede's first-person point of view. I liked the sprinkling of reveals throughout that flip your assumptions at every turn. The ending moved it from a decent 4 to solid 4.5 stars for me. 

The audio narration by Adepero Oduye was brilliant and helped me better connect with the setting and culture of the characters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Blood, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Drug use, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Trafficking

jenlengland's review

dark 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Murder

liv_ldn's review

dark funny mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Murder

chris_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Blood

Moderate: Infidelity, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Misogyny and Pedophilia

stellahadz's review

dark fast-paced

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

4.25

Despite its dark themes, this was a fast-paced, entertaining read. The prose is simple yet effective in capturing the essence of each character within a relatively short number of pages. I actually wish the book had been a bit longer so the ending could have tied up some loose ends, but I still really enjoyed it. It subverts expectations of its genre - it's less about the serial killer herself, and more about the narrator, her sister Korede, who feels a sense of duty and protection towards her. Ultimately, it's less a story about crime and more a story about sibling dynamics and the question of how far you would go to protect someone you love.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Medical content and Death of parent

Minor: Adult/minor relationship