Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

8 reviews

florizona's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Murder

Moderate: Death and Death of parent

Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

rubys100's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Great book until the rushed ending and not all plot points are explained. 
I found the 1908 parts much more enjoyable then present day. 
Some of the characters decisions didn’t match who they were in my opinion. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Miscarriage and Forced institutionalization

mtehan7's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

I loved the beginning of this book and how much mystery there was, it was truly hard to put down. But I feel like it faltered in the end, it felt rushed and mildly cheesy.. for as much time was spent enhancing the mystery, I feel the ending could have been more drawn out, and more satisfying. Overall though, it was a unique story, and a fun supernatural experience. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

michaelat21's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

The ending of this book sucked. I loved the book and was on the edge of my seat and then it just kinda ended in the most meh way and fell flat. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, and Blood

Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Injury/Injury detail

jjjreads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol

soygirlsupreme's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

2.5

I truly have no idea how this book gets 5 or 4 star reviews. This was simply just okay, at best. The premise was interesting and I nearly devoured the first 200 pages or so, but oh so quickly did a 4 star book become a 2 star book. It is creepy, that is for sure. It’s a spooky read, but it isn’t satiating. It doesn’t give you that horror fix, if that’s what you’re looking for. Candace villain is a joke of a trope, and didn’t quite fit the bill and seemed like an afterthought. Some of the plot lines felt forced, and the ending felt unrealistic and uncharacteristic for Ruthie—who, at the end of day, I didn’t care about. The last 100-160 pages or so felt like sloppy, thrown together writing without the semblance of a good, thrilling punch. I will not reveal any spoilers, but listen here: leave this one on the shelf. I found it for $2.50 at a thrift store and there’s a good reason someone gave it away. Though McMahon starts out strong, with a compelling story and intrigue, it falls very, very flat. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Forced institutionalization, and Grief

Minor: Miscarriage and Suicide

chellbear's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Mental illness, Blood, and Car accident

Minor: Body horror, Cancer, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, and Abandonment

keenanmaree's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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 was a really fun, spooky book that was almost half noir/half campfire ghost story. I absolutely loved the atmosphere of this book. Winter in Vermont was a lovely setting for such a creepy and sad story. 

The shifting narrative (shifting between timelines *and* shifting between characters) could have easily been awkward and overly complicated, but it was executed very smoothly, and the loose ends came together quite nicely for the most part. 

I have to say that the end was the weakest part for me. I wasn’t totally unhappy with it, but I really did hope for a resolution that would (spoilers here!!!) free Ruthie from the burden of babysitting a violent zombie child. Though her life on that farm sounded pretty idyllic and peaceful (for the most part...) so maybe it’s a decent trade off?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Forced institutionalization, and Grief

Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Blood, and Kidnapping

Minor: Animal death and Sexism