Reviews tagging 'Miscarriage'

Daughters of Sparta by Claire Heywood

25 reviews

tylaticklemouse's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, and Grief

Moderate: Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

lesemaus2303's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

bushbabybookworm's review against another edition

sad medium-paced

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

3.0

Maybe it’s because I read Costanza Casati’s “Clytemnestra” last year but this just didn’t measure up.

Mediocre in every way.

The writing  didn’t pull me in. The characters were flat & I just couldn’t care about them.
The story still had the dark and rough parts (cause mythology) but the writing & characters did not make it worth it.

Still, I’m glad I read it. I love Greek mythology & this had been on my TBR for years…

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny

Moderate: Rape, Medical trauma, and War

Minor: Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Grief, and Pregnancy

aylabell's review

challenging emotional reflective fast-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

4.0

An interesting retelling of classic myth. It was a bit preachy in some places and the feminist lens felt a bit forced at times, but overall a beautiful take on Greek myth. Definitely makes more sense if you have decent knowledge of the mythos as there is lots of subtle nods to further mythology. Klytemnestra and Helen’s thoughts and feelings were hauntingly relatable for women through the ages and I felt a deep sense of connection and empathy to their plights. A must read for those that enjoy modern takes on classics. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child death

annemoon's review against another edition

emotional relaxing fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

larade's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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

3.5

In her novel, Heywood builds on the well-known myths surrounding Helen and Klytemnestra by adding historically authentic details and giving the two women room to reclaim their respective narratives. 

For a while, I was sure this would be a five star read! I loved hearing about the sisters' different approaches to the fates they were handed and thoroughly enjoyed the way the narrative was built up. The pacing was great up until the beginning of the Trojan War when it, unfortunately, changed drastically. 

I understand why the author did not want to linger too much on this timespan, given how many other novels are already covering it extensively. Nonetheless, the frequent time jumps made the story suddenly feel unnecessarily rushed and made me lose grasp on the characters. Helen, who had been so promising before, suddenly became incredibly shallow - to a point where I felt as though I was reading about an entirely different person. While I still enjoyed Klytemnestra's chapters, the way her storyline was cut off did not work for me at all and made me wonder whether there would be a sequel. (There isn't. You'll have to go back to the Greek tragedies for that.) 

All in all, this book had a lot of potential. The writing is great! About two thirds of the story are incredibly reflective and emotional! I just wish it hadn't steered off track as much as it did towards the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, and Suicide

shan_lou's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

evemel's review against another edition

challenging emotional 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, and Rape

amobrien's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad medium-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

4.25

I'm a sucker for mythological retellings — though I will say that Daughters of Sparta is light on the magic that I normally expect from mythology and sticks more to realism. I found this to be really effective for this story as it delves into the Trojan War and its horrors, and I think it allows readers to connect with the characters as people more than as mythological figures. I really enjoyed the way the story focused on the two sisters Helen and Klytemnestra. Though separated by their responsibilities and geography, I loved seeing the ways in which the sisters were similar as well as how they were different, and how both of their choices affected each other and their communities. Though this book is heavy at times, I found it to be a rather quick read. If you love Greek mythology, I definitely think this is worth adding to your list!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Infidelity, Rape, Slavery, Violence, and War

Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, and Murder

Minor: Animal death and Injury/Injury detail

nevdite284's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, and War

Moderate: Miscarriage, Misogyny, Medical content, and Kidnapping