Reviews with content warning for Death - Atonement

Reviews tagging 'Death'

Atonement by Ian McEwan

49 reviews

damianwayne's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-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

5.0

Jesus fucking Christ. I hated the first half of this book when nothing happened, but then too much happened and I was desperate for it. Really beautiful and haunting writing from Ian McEwan even if you can read his cockiness through his writing sometimes (all the time). I am actually actively fighting against crying right now because I’m sitting with my family. Might be added to my list of favourite books I’ve ever read (this, Maurice, Babel)

Three things need to atone for this book breaking my heart: McEwan, Briony and the shuffle of TTPD that Spotify created.
I finished this book whilst listening to Peter by Taylor Swift and the idea of never reuniting with not only the person you loved, but never feeling again that level of love itself is heartbreaking. This is why my teacher said crime is just a sub genre of tragedy really. loml is playing now it’s so criminal.

Also, I think it’s so interesting that my willingness to forgive Briony came from initially believing the happy ending she gave us. But ultimately what makes me hate her is that her giving them a happy ending isn’t her atoning, but her cowardice to truly admit that despite her wanting to make amends, she couldn’t and they would’ve suffered no matter what. The damage she did was so great there was no going back from the moment she uttered those words to Leon that night. It was always going to end this way.

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rochelleisreading's review against another edition

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sad fast-paced

3.0

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blackfaefables's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

I'm so glad I decided to pick this book up again. The beautiful descriptive writing, the detailed historical fiction, and captivating slow-burn romance at the center were definitely the highlights of this read.

I felt like an English major again as I tried to predict the trajectory of the story using the many beautiful uses of literary devices throughout.

I highly recommend. it's more slow paced than medium paced to me but in a good way I think.

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floralvinyls's review against another edition

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4.5

beautifully written, but i think i preferred the movie (i know, i'm sorry). didn't know i could hate a 12-year old child this much, but here we are.

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em_1920's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

DRAMA. Oh you will be so mad at the end.

FUCK Briony she’s the literal worst. At first when I read this I was a bit confused who the narrator was because they seemed to be omniscient and the tone was that of an adult. But it was seemingly telling to story mainly through a little girl’s perspective. And I was SO confused why Cecilia and Robbie had NO chemistry in the beginning. By the end though it was clear that Briony was jealous and selfish not only for what she actually did to Robbie, Cecilia and Lola in real life but then USING their story and trying to justify her actions.

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torigottlieb's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad slow-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

5.0

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laudee's review against another edition

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reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.5

I had to read this book for school and did not finish it at first because it is just not my favourite genre. Now, preparing for my finals, I listened to the audiobook and have to appreciate the different narrative perspectives and the interesting approach to atonement. However, I could not get myself to really care for any of the characters and the general theme and pace of the book is just not my cup of tea.

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