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pyronautphea's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Abortion, Body shaming, Rape, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Ableism, Pregnancy, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Infidelity, Infertility, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Vomit
Minor: Religious bigotry, Dementia, and Alcoholism
stellarkai's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Suicide, Terminal illness, Ableism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Abortion and Sexual assault
poisoned_icecream's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Ableism and Pregnancy
min3's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Chronic illness, Ableism, and Suicide
mecmccann's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Elena is a Parkinson’s patient, and her daughter Rita is her caretaker. But one rainy day, Rita is found hanging, dead, in the church belfry. The police have ruled it a suicide, but Elena disagrees, it was raining that day, and Rita would never go into the church in the rain. She is determined to find her daughter’s murderer. “Elena Knows” follows Elena through a day, as she trembles through her relationship with her daughter, their relationships with religion, and how their individual values impacted those around them.
This book is about mother-daughter relationships, caregivers, and religious dogma. Rita takes care of her mother, but resents her for how she presents herself, even though Elena is disabled and declining rapidly. Through this story, as you watch Elena struggle, you simultaneously root for her to find out what happened, while considering that Rita was not kind to her mother or to those around her. Before her death, she made Elena go to the hair salon because she didn’t like how she looked since she could no longer do her hair, and she would yell at her for drooling. Throughout her day, Elena attempts to utilize other people’s bodies to find out what happened the day Rita died, from the police to the taxi driver, until she is confronted with someone Rita once impacted. These events lead up to a climax where Elena is forced to confront the effects of Rita’s worldview on outside individuals.
Graphic: Ableism, Abortion, Infertility, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Suicide
jouljet's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Abortion, Grief, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Ableism, Medical trauma, Rape, and Suicide
jaiari12's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Suicide, Grief, Ableism, and Medical content
Moderate: Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Abortion, Rape, Sexual violence, and Vomit
myparisbookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Terminal illness, Suicide, and Death
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Rape and Abortion
bethantg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Abortion, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Misogyny, Suicide, Cursing, Sexual violence, Death, Grief, Ableism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Pregnancy, Violence, Excrement, and Vomit
leahb88's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Ableism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Pregnancy and Domestic abuse