Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez

18 reviews

blackteadragon's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Rape, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Miscarriage and War

fiz23_'s review

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Classism

Minor: Ableism

c3liaiswhoiam's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

Deeply disturbing. But very good. I was hooked the whole time, and I never quite knew what to expect. 

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Torture

ianridewood's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Homophobia

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

2.25

Review:

Our Share of Night is the first book by Mariana Enriquez that I have read. Although the plot and the story (mostly) kept my interest throughout its 500+ pages, I struggled to feel emotionally invested in the story. The horror element of the story, while certainly objectively horrifying, failed to scare me. At most, I felt slightly unnerved. The story is well-crafted and comes together nicely, but it did not need to be as long as it is. 

 

The book explores themes of family/generational trauma, relationships, PTSD, war, queer love, and violence. Personally, I did not find the way the story handles these topics to be particularly insightful or original, and I think the book struggles under the weight of all the themes and issues it touches upon. However, I could definitely see someone else connecting to this story on a deeper level than I did, especially if they have a personal connection to the setting or topics.

 

Some of the representation of physical disability struck me as a bit insensitive, but as an able-bodied person I do not feel qualified to speak on that. One thing I do feel qualified to object to, however, is the unnecessary and problematic representation of two individuals who undergo sex changes. These characters are described as undergoing these procedures in order to better worship the god of Darkness, an evil demon, and the narrator notes that people would freak out if they knew how the Order (the demonic cult in the story) had infiltrated the NHS. Given how trans health care is under attack, any portrayal of these procedures as being related to demonic worship is inherently problematic—but what makes me especially angry is that these characters are literally of no importance to the story whatsoever. These characters are briefly mentioned, only to die shortly after their introduction. 

 

 

The Run-Down: 

You will probably like Our Share of Night if:

·      You have a personal connection to the story’s setting or its themes

 

You might not like Our Share of Night if:

·      You don’t want to read a really dark book (please read the content warnings! This book is not for the faint of heart)

·      You dislike morally questionable main characters

 

A Film like Our Share of Night:

Hereditary, directed by Ari Aster (2018). Similarities between these two pieces of media include:

·      Intense horror plotlines that explore grief, family inheritance, and generational trauma

·      Demon cults and possession

 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Addiction, Cancer, Infertility, Miscarriage, Car accident, Abortion, and Pregnancy

laindarko2's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, and Colonisation

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Drug use, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Vomit, Kidnapping, Car accident, and Abandonment

torismazarine's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual violence, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Classism

bibliotecaria_tanisha's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

Mi primer libro de horror...inolvidable. El dolor que viven los personajes lo sientes en tus entrañas, la tristeza te pesa en el alma, la desesperación te eriza la piel...Todo lo humano y lo no-humano entinta cada página de esta novela. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Grief, and Death of parent