Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez

33 reviews

fiz23_'s review against another edition

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

gtierk's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

4.5

It might be insane to say an already 600+ page book should have been longer, but the resolution felt a little rushed to me. Information comes slowly (you won't understand some major plot points until ~400 pages in) but, at least for me, satisfyingly. Not for the squeamish, as mutilation and child abuse are depicted extensively throughout the novel, but an interesting reflection on fate/free will and the legacy of class and violence in Argentina following the military dictatorship 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Car accident and Abandonment

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Homophobia, and Cannibalism

mispaintedlady's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely amazing , beyond words how good this story is. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: War

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Dysphoria, War, and Classism

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

sophmcgraw's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Minor: Gun violence, Homophobia, and Torture

olivesolivesolivess23's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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

An extremely unsettling supernatural epic set amidst the backdrop of the dictadura in Argentina. 

With its evocative and imaginative writing soaked with visceral images of gore and violence, this is a very challenging and difficult read. 

However, Enriquez’s masterful storytelling and characterisation make  OSON a really compelling and impactful book to immerse yourself in. 

I really enjoyed the multi character perspectives and the intersections between them. Definitely will reread again at a later date! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

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

marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad medium-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

Our Share of Night is an inimitable masterpiece, a stunning work of literary horror.  Enríquez’s storytelling is breathtaking and immersive, with gritty, tightly-woven character relationships which evolve over decades.  At the novel’s center is a pagan cult like that of Argentina’s San La Muerte, which here is guided by heart-stopping nightmares and pure horror.  The book is chiefly, however, a heartbreaking story of father and son, colored by political violence, a culture of fear, and ties that bind.  I didn’t want it to end, and I want to read it again, immediately.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and War

Minor: Cancer, Eating disorder, Racial slurs, Suicide, Vomit, Cannibalism, Alcohol, and Colonisation

introverted_reads's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

5 stars

ARC provided by publisher on NetGalley for an honest review

“The god lives in the shadows. Be careful, it sleeps, but it lives.”

Our Share of Night is a delightfully gothic exploration of paternal love and protection, desperation, Argentinian political history, and the allure of cults and promises of immortality. Mariana Enriquez captures a turbulent period of politics, as well as the extremities of paternal love, in a thrilling novel of the supernatural and the unnerving gothic tropes also demonstrated in Enriquez’s short stories.

“‘People who love each other don’t hurt each other’… ‘That’s not true… I hurt you to save you’”

The relationship between Juan and Gaspar is central to the novel, and it is unapologetically raw and rooted in a primitive urge to protect. The extremities Juan goes to in order to protect his son are savage; Gaspar’s life is placed above all else, including Gaspar’s well-being. Mariana Enriquez captures a complicated father-son relationship which is steeped in moral ambiguity, suffering, but above all else, an unconditional love. 

“… I didn’t hurt you. I’m protecting you the best that I can and as far as I know how to do it.”

Juan as a character and father is a triumph of skilful construction; he’s complex, and thoroughly maladjusted, yet there is an immediate connection to his character. Juan is, most essentially, a victim - he is what the Bradford family made him, his humanity abandoned for the sake of survival. Juan raises complicated moral questions; his methods are savage, but underlying every choice is a fierce love of his son. Juan demonstrates the lengths that we, as humans, will go for the people we love. Juan’s characterisation is rooted in reality, Juan echoes the parents who have killed their own children in a final desperate attempt to protect them, and it is this fundamental reality which makes Juan’s character so essentially human.

“I wish I could stop loving him, forget him, I wish he’d die… He was never afraid with his father; he could be afraid of him, but not with him.”

Juan’s son, Gaspar, continues this complicated relationship. There is a maturity to Gaspar’s character that allows him to recognise his father’s moral failings, as such; Enriquez doesn’t choose a blind obedience, an unconditional love, but an incredibly real response of a resentment of the love towards those who hurt us. It is inevitably disaster and pain which draws Gaspar and Juan together, suffering which ties their souls to one another: “He only had dreams. Dreams where he opened the door and found Adela. Dreams where she didn’t get away from him… Dreams where Gaspar got up from the mattress, his father already dead, already ashes on the bed, and went to the kitchen and slit his own throat with a knife, blood pouring out, drenching the walls, his pants, his face, his hands, until everything he saw was red and he could let himself die once and for all. He, too, could have black eyes.”

In addition to complex characterisations, Enriquez offers a commentary on political affairs, from dictatorships and financial elitism, to underground queer culture of the 60s and rebellion. 

“How can I get you out of hell? I can’t, I am one of the mistresses of hell, but hell has its corners, and we can rule there, rule and disobey.”

Mariana Enriquez roots their novel in the Argentinian history of dictatorship, guerrilla fighters and genocide; rebellion and defiance are foundations of the narrative. It is rebelllion and non-conformity which drive the narrative forward, demonstrating the desperate push for liberation seen so often in history. Disobedience is presented as the ultimate weapon against dictatorship and enslavement, and the cult of the Darkness acts as a perfect microcosm of wider political issues. There is a sharp attack on capitalism - “All fortunes are built on the suffering of others, and ours, though it has unique and astonishing characteristics, is no exception.” - as well as references to queer history, polari and androgyny. Despite being a work of fiction, Our Share of Night is firmly rooted in politics and history, and offers an immortalisation of underground communities, as well as a condemnation of dictatorships and capitalism still prevalent in a contemporary political climate.

“… you have something of mine, I passed something of me onto you, and hopefully it isn’t cursed, I don’t know if I can leave you something that isn’t dirty, that isn’t dark, our share of night.”

Our Share of Night is a triumph of contemporary gothic fiction, utilising extremes of religion, cults and behaviour, and combining the empirical with the supernatural, to explore anthropological questions on love, family, faith and rebellion. Mariana Enriquez is an unmissable voice in gothic fiction, and this novel is well deserving of a place in the canon of gothic. It wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest should this be made a classic.

Quotes taken from e-ARC provided through NetGalley and may change in final published work

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Vomit, and Abandonment