Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor

5 reviews

aileron's review

reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Abortion, and Abandonment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

iridescencedeep's review

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Uses "beautiful" 23 times.

Writing is gorgeous. Murky. There's tension in every conversation. Lots of meaning in the small details, in these people's lives, or maybe Taylor is just imagining it. Sex, sometimes meaningful but mostly otherwise. In another sense, always meaningful, because what else could have meaning. 

^ That's the vibe, with a slightly higher density of five dollar words. 

(personal note: date started is approximate)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Violence

lay_kone's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

goldenaces00's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

It starts like a train, full steam ahead, and had me ferociously reading for about the first half. However, new (not as charismatic) characters are introduced, the plot is lost, and the ending left me deeply unsatisfied. It was a really strong, visual, and intimate story that read like poetry at some parts, but overall felt more like a collection of short stories with loose connections than a single novel with a plot. If you like stories about complicated artists that like to have sex, this is a great read. I just wish Taylor would have made his ensemble smaller,  focused on  character development, and given the readers a more powerful takeaway at the end. There are various subplots that go nowhere and are either tied up too early or never at all.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Child abuse, Rape, and Kidnapping

Minor: Abortion

ukponge's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Violence