Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Elektra by Jennifer Saint

113 reviews

sarahbroccoli's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

This is the best book I have read in a long time

I think a lot of the people who have reviewed this book before me are missing the point that Elektra is who the ~Electra complex~ was named after: the idea that daughters compete with their mothers for their father’s attention and affection. Sound kinda sexist? Absolutely, that’s because it is. Elektra is totally acting on internalized misogyny and rage toward her mother for seeking vengeance against Agamemnon, even though Agamemnon is the one who committed such a terrible act

(and murdered her sister!!)

Also, Elektra holds on to this rage and bitterness throughout the duration of the book, so of course she’s unlikeable. I don’t think we are meant to like Elektra. At the same time, I think to some extent her anger and hurt is justified; she lost her father and her mother has removed herself from her life. That’s part of the beauty of this book, it made me feel for both Clymenestra and Elektra, just to different extents.

Saint does SUCH a great job of showcasing the nuances of family relationships, female rage, grief, and the consequences of seeking revenge. It’s also worth mentioning that Saint does portray the ways that women CAN support and empathize with each other (I.e. the relationship between Clymenestra and Cassandra), even though Elektra clearly does not do that.

Of course besides the content, the prose was beautiful. I enjoyed every second of reading this book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Murder, and War

lolasherwin's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, and War

chilivanilli28's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Minor: Sexual assault

claire_marg22's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-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

3.75

Beautifully written and captivating for the most part, but extremely frustrating at times when listening to a particular character’s perspective. However, I do think there is something to say about that being the author’s choice, as the cycles of trauma and violence that the women in this book result in each of them becoming metaphorically “uglier” than when they began. I think based on your own experiences, it’s is easy to empathize and relate to one or all of the narrators at one point or another. I did wish for more from Cassandra’s chapters, she felt like more of a plot movement device rather than an equal character on her own journey. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape, Sexual violence, and Slavery

lnolen01's review

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Slavery

Minor: Misogyny and Toxic relationship

bectothebooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Blood, and Gaslighting

Minor: Incest and Pregnancy

roshanreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Minor: Incest

blancablar's review against another edition

reflective 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Death

Moderate: Rape, Sexism, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, War, and Deportation

Minor: Animal death, Confinement, Cannibalism, and Pregnancy

lauramcc7's review

adventurous dark sad fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and War

emma3674's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

Fairly entertaining but I found this quite boring compared to other books I’ve read recently, it took me about six months to finish compared to a few days to a week for others

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail