Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

216 reviews

raefoth's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.0

This world is so interesting and rich and I can’t wait to dive into Hellbent! I really liked the character work and the magic system/world building, but I feel like the multi timeline was very jarring for the first third of the book. I fully thought “Last Fall” meant the academic year before for 2/3 of the book lol. I also felt like the use of the SA felt very trauma porn to me, and was just there as a plot device which was frustrating. Ultimately a good fall spooky read but falls a little short of being an amazing one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder

velvethaunter's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Rape

Moderate: Vomit

eviethebookworm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Gore, and Vomit

Minor: Medical trauma and Classism

liv_graceish's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Murder, and Classism

emily_therese_4's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

If I could rate this book 6 stars I would. I love this book with all my heart, it made me feel all the emotions and I’m so so excited to read book 2

Update: reread October 2024

This is and will always be my comfort book. These characters feeling like family to me and this world feels like finally coming home after a long day. It’s like my own fucked up culty version of Harry Potter and I eat it up EVERY DANG TIME.

PLEASE check the triggers before reading this. It is full of trauma and heartbreak, but also really cool shit and an incredible setting.

This book has all of the things I love in it. Dark academia, murder mystery, complex characters, a unique world and plot. Brilliant banter. 

If I wasn’t crying I was laughing. My heart breaks for Alex and all the things she is put through during this book and her life. I can relate to her. She’s a freaking badass who’s been dealt a shit hand but STILL never ceases to stand up for the people she cares about. She is an incredible character and her tenacity is enviable. 

Also the way I feel so immersed in this book is like no other. The deeper meanings, the descriptive language, the utter perfection that is this fucking plot. I will never stop loving it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

witchvial's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Murder

blue_skye's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

agedmordorblue's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Fun read! I've not read much occult/magic realism before, but I quite liked this excursion into the genre. It took me a while to truly get hooked, but once the story got me, I found it hard to put down.  The prologue felt a bit cheap and didn't necessarily add much tension to the story and it takes nearly until the end for the story to catch up. Overall it seems like a fairly straightforward whodunnit, but it remains enjoyable throughout.

The book throws graphic descriptions of stuff like rape and abuse at you kinda out of nowhere, so maybe don't pick this book if you're looking for something light.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence

Moderate: Gaslighting

slowry44's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I really like the characters, the writing and the world building, but this book would not let up on the abuse, SA, and constant bleak/grim violence against its characters. The tone is occasionally unbearable to the point of sometimes skipping large chunks of text that are just the author describing the particular manner in which a character is being brutalized this chapter. The magic system is really cool and the creativity in the world design is spectacular. I am glad I got through it cause I quite liked the ending and the answers it brought, but fuck was it a dark and dreary trudge to get there.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

citori's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, and Violence