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harning12's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Sexual assault
katherinejayne's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-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
This wasn’t a pleasant read but it was impactful.
It showed the complexity of relationships and emotion, and how we don’t always do what is best for us at first.
The story is brutal but the writing makes you want to know how it ends for Turtle/Julia.
It showed the complexity of relationships and emotion, and how we don’t always do what is best for us at first.
The story is brutal but the writing makes you want to know how it ends for Turtle/Julia.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence
quileee's review against another edition
dark
emotional
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
mi_chellewong's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
the most gut-wrenching book i’ve read in a really long time. this book actually insane. turtle’s stockholm syndrome combined with the utter terror of a monster that is her father make this book so incredibly terrifying and sad and yet i could not put it down because i needed to know that turtle would be okay. the way tallent writes turtle’s thoughts and how she begins to reshape her beliefs is so beautifully and tragically done. the two things i would say about this book- i feel like the last chapter was missing something. maybe it’s my own want for a tidy ending but even then it felt like it left too many things unsaid. also, what high schooler talks like brett and jacob do 😭
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood
lyndseylibros's review against another edition
Nope nope nope. Can’t listen to incest. This book made me ill
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Rape, and Sexual content
amessina3399's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Wow. What beautiful language, and what a masterfully told and utterly heart wrenching tale. While not told in the first person, this story paints such a viscerally clear picture of what it’s like being in an abusive relationship, and why it can be so hard to leave. The only thing stopping me from giving a full 5 stars is the ending—it was a great ending, don’t get me wrong, but it left a lot of holes open that were set up earlier in the book to seemingly be revisited. So while I was disappointed with its conclusion, it was overall a fantastic read that I highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Mass/school shootings, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
greenwillow77's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
When I pick up a book for the first time, I have a routine- I read the back cover, see if I like the idea of the book; then a random page or two to see if the writing interests me; then the inside front pages to see if there are interesting pull quotes, then I skim the author bio if there is one, because sometimes it will offer a crumb of information about the person the author wants to appear as to you. In the case of this book, my edition opens with the fact the author was “raised by two mothers.” That’s sweet, right? It’s hardly unusual now, but it’s nice to see he credits his parents enough to mention them first, & f’ yeah for visibility.
Then I read the book, & I realised why this fact above all others would be what stuck like a splinter in my brain. There is no way to sugarcoat or avoid the violent, monstrous misogyny in the language & abusive behaviour that Turtle both lives with & has internalised. Even as she grows more & more aware of it, it rushes out of the story in punishing current that hurls you towards an ending that looms with the inevitability of a tsunami.
It would be easy for me to tell you how appalling Turtle’s father is in intricate & fine detail, but like true crime finding delight in the supposed intricacies of the crimes of men who kill women, his humanity, grief, his ability to see the environmental disaster the world faces, feel like giving him credit he doesn’t deserve.
& perhaps that is the skill here, to take someone who ultimately deserves everything he gets, & occasionally think he might have a microcopic glimmer of humanity. To take a story of unrelenting, visceral, hardship & abuse, & set it against a landscape that shimmers with beauty. Nature is not kind, but it is gorgeous. Above all, that kept me reading through the darkness & grinding cruelty even as Turtle begins to resist her father’s rule.
The are echoes of “The Wasp Factory” here, & hints of “Deliverance” (which is name checked in the text, very meta.) This is a genuinely well written book, I can’t argue with the skill or the story telling even when it stumbles- the romantic plot feels clumsy but perhaps that is more down to reflecting on Turtle’s own inexperience. What I can’t reconcile in myself is that this is a story written by a man, about the graphic abuse & isolation of a girl by her father, & for however well written & beautiful it can be, it still boils down to my discomfort at that fact.
Then I read the book, & I realised why this fact above all others would be what stuck like a splinter in my brain. There is no way to sugarcoat or avoid the violent, monstrous misogyny in the language & abusive behaviour that Turtle both lives with & has internalised. Even as she grows more & more aware of it, it rushes out of the story in punishing current that hurls you towards an ending that looms with the inevitability of a tsunami.
It would be easy for me to tell you how appalling Turtle’s father is in intricate & fine detail, but like true crime finding delight in the supposed intricacies of the crimes of men who kill women, his humanity, grief, his ability to see the environmental disaster the world faces, feel like giving him credit he doesn’t deserve.
& perhaps that is the skill here, to take someone who ultimately deserves everything he gets, & occasionally think he might have a microcopic glimmer of humanity. To take a story of unrelenting, visceral, hardship & abuse, & set it against a landscape that shimmers with beauty. Nature is not kind, but it is gorgeous. Above all, that kept me reading through the darkness & grinding cruelty even as Turtle begins to resist her father’s rule.
The are echoes of “The Wasp Factory” here, & hints of “Deliverance” (which is name checked in the text, very meta.) This is a genuinely well written book, I can’t argue with the skill or the story telling even when it stumbles- the romantic plot feels clumsy but perhaps that is more down to reflecting on Turtle’s own inexperience. What I can’t reconcile in myself is that this is a story written by a man, about the graphic abuse & isolation of a girl by her father, & for however well written & beautiful it can be, it still boils down to my discomfort at that fact.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Pregnancy and Abandonment
Minor: Drug use
mcywntr's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Rape, and Death of parent
emmasxph's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book should come with trigger warnings
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
maybak's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
C’est un livre qui ne laissera personne indifférent. J’ai trouvé les 70 premières pages difficiles à lire d’un point de vue émotionnel car on comprend rapidement qu’il s’agit d’un père incestueux et que Julia Alveston alias Turtle est une ado maltraitée et en décrochage scolaire. Sa mère est morte dans des circonstances peu claires et elle a grandit avec Martin, son père survivaliste, alcoolique et féru d’armes à feux. Son grand-père, Daniel, vit tout près d’eux dans son mobile home avec sa chienne âgée Rosy mais son fils et lui sont loin d’être en bons termes. Turtle vit dans des conditions difficiles et elle est victime d’abus aussi bien émotionnels que physiques. L’auteur a très bien su retranscrire comment une enfant maltraitée et qui n’a pas d’autres points de repères fait pour rationaliser les sévices qu’elle subit et à quel point il lui est difficile de tracer une ligne entre ce qui est normal et ce qui ne l’est pas.
Turtle prend conscience du fossé entre son enfance et l’enfance des autres enfants lorsqu’elle fait la connaissance de Brett et Jacob. La mère de Brett était une amie de la mère de Julia et on sent qu’elle se fait du souci pour elle car elle connaît bien son père. Jacob vit une vie radicalement différente de celle de Turtle. Ses parents sont aisés, éduqués et souvent absents. J’ai aimé comment Gabriel Tallent a su montrer que la communauté tente d’aider Julia comme elle peut à travers les personnages d’Anna, la prof de Turtle, de Jacob, Brett et leurs familles. Il a également su montrer à quel point il est facile pour des enfants maltraités de passer entre les mailles du filet car personne dans l’entourage de Julia ne se rend compte que son père l’a abandonnée pendant 3 mois, après le décès fracassant du grand-père de Julia.
Le roman est fort en émotions, plutôt graphique par moments et j’ai trouvé la deuxième moitié plus entraînante. Le rythme et l’intrigue s’intensifient et on est tenu en haleine en se demandant comment les choses vont finir pour Turtle et la petite Cayenne.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault