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torihbu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
there seems to be a point to the story--questioning religion, capitalism, haves v have-nots, death, afterlife, pain, suffering, all the dark parts of the human experience. a medieval kingdom is a good place to explore those themes. however, the themes are overshadowed by disrespectfully odd scenes that have the same shock-value as a bad comedian trying to get a rise out of the audience.
sometimes the themes were delivered subtly, but most of the time, the themes were very blunt and overtly described. there was not much for the reader to think about or learn--it was just one shocking, depressing, or annoying scene after the other.
i would recommend if you're in the mood to indulge in the horrors of the human experience without having to get too depressed or think too hard about what you're reading. otherwise, maybe skip this one!!
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Xenophobia, Excrement, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Miscarriage
crybabybea's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
This book felt like watching a medieval play; the fiefdom is nothing more than a backdrop to watch our characters act out their darkest desires. It worked really well as a vehicle to tell the story of the human condition of trying to find meaning in life and how people's perspectives shape the way they experience the world and make sense of the things that happen to them and the choices they make. The story is told with an omniscient narrator that jumps from character to character, which does make for some telling-not-showing issues here and there. But overall the writing was well done, and Moshfegh is very intentional about each and every word she chooses to really dial up the grotesque imagery that fills every page. In Lapvona, babies are not birthed, they are plunked out.
The characters we follow are like caricatures of the worst people you have ever met. You have the perpetual victim Jude, who sees it as his manly duty to beat his child and rape women; the pitiful Marek who makes excuses for his own actions but judges the actions of others; the pious holier-than-thou servant Lispeth, who denies herself all mortal desires except a single piece of cabbage every day; the imbecile lord Villiam that can't be alone with his thoughts for more than 2 minutes
The characters are exasperatingly self-serving. They don't think about others except to judge them. Their interactions with each other are always transactional, full of projections that each casts onto the other.
"You're too kind, young sir," Villiam said. "It is all a testament to God's glory, not mine." He looked at the priest to say something further, but Barnabas was picking the bones out of his fish stew. He'd been ornery and distracted lately. Perhaps the priest suffered from envy--Villiam would soon be a father to the son of God; Barnabas would never attain such glory.
Each character spends all their time in their own head, constantly feigning moral superiority over arbitrary rules, lacking empathy and self-reflection. At the same time, the reader can see bits of themselves in each character too which causes a bit of ironic self-reflection. I, too, cannot eat my dinner without watching a silly little guy dance for me on a screen.
The idiocy of the characters and the disgusting plot that ensues opens up a commentary on things like religion, moral piety, putting certain ideas or people on pedestals, all that jazz. It explores the idea of perspective and uses a lot of (disgusting) imagery about eyeballs.
I don't want to say this book was funny because of its horrifying content, but the whole book was filled with a sardonic tone that worked really well for me. Characters had sarcastic, dry one-liners that did make me chuckle:
"Why do I feel unhappy?" he asked Lispeth.
She shrugged her shoulders.
"Don't you have any wisdom?"
"No."
The witchy character, Ina, adds a bit of dark fairytale imagery that lends itself well to the setting and overall themes of religion and perspective. Don't get me wrong, she is also a terrible person that abuses everyone she comes across for her own benefit, but her storyline in particular is super interesting and its fairytale-esque quality adds a bit of supernatural mystery and causes reflection on things like higher powers and idols.
This was a good introduction into horror, even though this book doesn't really get classified as horror. I definitely think it leans more on the literary side, but it reads like a depressing gothic fairytale and calls upon some of the imagery that is often used in horror such as religion and inner turmoil, but with a sarcastic, ironic twist. Yeah I liked this a lot despite (or in part, because of?) its gratuitous depravity. I really liked how Moshfegh used horror elements to an absolutely absurd degree. I read a lot of reviews saying that the horrific scenes served no purpose except cheap shock value, which I definitely can see, but to me it felt like that was exactly what she was going for. They are needlessly graphic to the point that they veer into absurdity which only amplifies the characters' issues with moral superiority and lack of self-reflection.
If you like horror or want to try to get into horror I think this would be a good read for you.
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
jenniferthor's review against another edition
5.0
it really is a weird lit fic read for the weird girlies.
now i need to find someone to talk about this one with. otherwise i might go crazy.
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexism, Torture, Blood, Vomit, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
zlizzyv's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Was the point to be as repulsive and evil as possible? Is it a cruel irony to have so many trigger warnings in one book?
I do not regret finishing the book, but I cannot say I enjoyed it.
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
k31r's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
megano_oregano's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic