Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

The Terror by Dan Simmons

9 reviews

meminger's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

is the ending bullshit? yes. am i compelled by these scurvy-ridden bastards and their doomed arctic voyage? unfortunately also yes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

black_october's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

What a horrifying take on one of the most chilling and mysterious doomed voyages in history.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

beasbookburrowxo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

elvenpanther's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

After finishing this novel I spent a few days trying to decide what I wanted to say about it. I enjoyed it immensely. Dan Simmons wrote it in such a detailed way that it was easy to paint a mental picture and lose yourself in the story as well as the setting. It probably helped that for a good chunk of this novel, I myself, was sitting in a blizzard (though with many more snacks, tea, warm blankets, and cats). I took my time with this one, I wanted to savor every moment with it. The pace of the book is slow, I tend to like novels that take their time and fill every moment with a wealth of detail. I know that not everyone shares this fondness, and that's fine. To each their own.
While I did enjoy the meandering pace and high detail, I'll admit that when it came  to some of the authors more technical descriptions of the naval structures and ships I may have zoned out a bit. I didn't feel that it took away from the story at all, I appreciated it, it's just not a topic I am super familiar with.
The cast of characters, while mainly being men of the British Navy, was still diverse in their personalities, backgrounds, and beliefs. There where characters I truly liked, that handled the circumstance  of their situation with grace, such as Lieutenant John Irving and Ice Master Thomas Blanky. Given the nature of what had befallen the crew of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, not every character could be expected to handle themselves with dignity and poise. Dan Simmons did a good job of showing both sides of the coin when it came to men's dispositions when faced with a very bleak and dangerous, life threatening event. Their were characters that I despised because their nature was so abhorrent. You would find yourself rooting for the survival of some while hoping karma caught up to others.
Crozier was a very interesting, but troubled character. It felt that his life had been spent in a struggle between who he truly was and who he tried to shape himself into as a member of the Royal British Navy. He was accomplished, but seemed looked down upon by others in his rank. He was bitter, and I couldn't blame him for it. Despite his demons he showed a loyalty to his crew that was very admirable. I feel like the ending was appropriate for him. While the last couple chapters did deviate from the style of the rest of the novel, I liked that they brought some understanding to what it was that hunted the men on the ice and why. I enjoyed that it delved into native lore and gave the novel that slightly fantastical twist.
There is so much I could say about this novel and I could go on for quite a while. I had rented a copy from my library, but the day after I finished it, I ordered a copy to keep on my shelf. I expect that this is one of those novels that I will revisit at another time or flip through when the mood strikes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gore, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, and Alcohol

struwos's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Violence, Medical content, and Cannibalism

pubis's review

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment

louisegraveyard's review

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty

jjjreads's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Excrement, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

sheryl_reads's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

900 pages never went so fast! This is a gripping story of the horrors of polar exploration - with a ‘horror’ beast thrown in. 

The research into the Franklin expedition and 19th century sailing is obvious - it’s never boring, but the detail is meticulous.  Each chapter tells a part of the story from different perspectives, all going towards building and moving the story to its inevitable end. 

Although I knew the outcome of the expedition, I couldn’t help but hope that some of the men made it through.

This would have been a 5 star read if not for one criticism - the inclusion of the ‘magical’ indigenous peoples. I appreciate the author wanted to include the belief system of the indigenous communities the sailors meet with but I didn’t feel this was a necessary part of the story. I really hoped the supernatural elements were due to the physical and psychological toll the men were under, but this wasn’t to be. 

Overall, it’s one I’d recommend and would say you shouldn’t be intimidated by the length!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, and Vomit