Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Kin by Kealan Patrick Burke

11 reviews

rkocher1's review against another edition

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

amber2976's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder

horrorfanstu's review

dark medium-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? No

3.25

How the book is printed mate it difficulty to hold/read.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder

sharron_joy_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Claire is stumbling down a lonely road in Elkwood, Alabama, brutalised, bloody, partly blinded and close to death. Her friends have been tortured and murdered And she is the sole survivor of a family of cannibals who believe they have a god given authority to kill. She is the only victim who has ever escaped them. This is the opening chapter of a rollercoaster into a depraved hell and I loved it! 

This is a character driven descent into a truly twisted reality. The violence is visceral, the imagery horrific and yet you can’t turn away. The result of Claire’s escape though miraculous, sets in motion a chain of events that sees so much destruction not only of the main character but of everyone around them. It is an uncomfortable look into the psyche as you witness the descent into insanity for both the abused and the abusers. The dual timelines cover both past and present, not to justify what happens but to give the raw context, it is devastating in its simplicity. 

It is compelling and impossible to look away from. One scene in particular made me want to bleach my brain, in a good kick in the teeth, what did I just read way! When I read I see images, like a movie playing behind my eyes and this would make such a fantastic horror film. It is often compared to Texas Chainsaw Massacre and I can see that, but this is better because in the midst of the horror is a beautifully written story, the location is a character in itself, it is visually descriptive and beautifully poetic which lulls you into a calm, before the storm starts again, brilliant! 

Kin is brutal and gruesome with no holds barred, it hurtles you into a path of pure evil and how being touched by that changes how you see the world, but it is so good, if you love horror you will love this. This is horror that is pure and raw wrapped up in stunning prose, read it if you dare! 

Also if you are ever tempted to go hiking in a remote wilderness, maybe reconsider, just saying! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Murder

This is pure horror but there is no animal or child abuse

msalikay's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

cristinarivas88's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, and War

mostlyliterate's review against another edition

i really thought i was ready for this and i was not!! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Vomit, and Kidnapping

Minor: Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Stalking

archaicrobin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I had been wanting to read Kin for awhile now based on all the positive reviews and I was not disappointed! While I enjoyed Kin it took me awhile to finish just because it honestly was a hard read. This book is very gruesome, and there were several times I had to put it down after reading a part that just stunned me. If you’re into gruesome horror that includes cannibalism, body horror, and just generally messed up hillbilly serial killers, you’ll love this one. 

Claire survives a psychotic hillbilly family that horrifically tortured and murdered her friends and ate them. She manages to escape and is found on the side of the road by a father and son that risk their lives to help her. The book switches perspectives throughout and gives the reader more insight into the killer family’s complete insanity as well as Claire’s struggle to move on, and even shows the perspective of characters that get pulled into the madness that occurred in Alabama. 

I really enjoyed this one, it was scary, it was suspenseful, it was gross, it was everything you want in a horror novel pretty much. All it was missing for me was ghosts! This was my second by this author, and I’m excited to read more by him. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Murder

michelareads's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

 “Don't you get it? It doesn't matter where I go. Here, back there, France, the North Pole, it doesn't matter. I'll never be safe again. You could build a castle around me and seal it up and I'd still be what I am. And what I am is scared.”

Naked and severely wounded, Claire Lambert manages to escape and run away from a cannibalistic family who killed her friends. Traumatized and in recovery, she struggles to move on with her life. But she is not the only one who has been affected by this horrible tragedy and in need of closure... and finally vengeance.

Kin starts with a brutal chapter. Maybe a little bit too brutal for my taste but, like a car crash, I could not take my eyes off of what was happening. I kept reading but to be honest... I was terrified. I considered giving up, I already have trouble sleeping, I really don't need THIS too.
But I kept going, because of my curiosity and all the great reviews and recommendations I got.

I really appreciated how the narration doesn't start before or during the abduction/torture of this group of unfortunate friends, but right afterwards. The story and development of Claire are well written, her feelings and reactions totally make sense to me (not to her sister, sadly) and I simply liked her a lot. Unfortunately I didn't like any of the other characters (except for Louise maybe) and even the good ones felt a bit too exaggerated in their traits sometimes. I did love reading the backstory and the beliefs of this lunatic family though, that was totally crazy!
Burke did a great job pacing the story and events and mixing suspense, gore, disgusting moments and shocking revelations; the writing again brilliant.

I enjoyed Kin, but it was a little bit too much for me. It actually made me feel physically sick in a couple of situations and I realized that maybe this kind of horror, so gory, is not for me anymore. Still, this is definitely a book I would recommend if you're looking for a visceral and bloody story.
4 stars. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Torture, Violence, and Cannibalism

amybibliophile's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Kin is deeply disturbing, raw and unsettling story set in Alabama, naturally I adored this book, I just couldn't put it down. Being 280 pages I was convinced I'd fly through it but I found I read it pretty slow as there was so much happening on every page I needed to take everything in and take my time.
From the get-go the book throws you straight into the brutal action of a girl that's had horrific acts carried out on her and guides you through her escape to freedom, only her freedom means the demise of many others.
The synopsis made me think I was going to be following numerous characters separate journeys and why yes this is the case to some extent, I didn't expect them to all be so intertwined and linked from the start. I enjoyed reading their personal journeys and perspectives, it gave the book some flesh and feeling rather than just a stabby-stabby tale from start to finish, I was more than surprised to find I developed feeling towards some of the characters, specifically farmers boy Peter Lowell.
This book is not for those squeamish to gore and brutal detail, and it portrays human-nature unapologetically. However if you like that sort of thing this will leave a mark on you way after you finish the last page. I have a feeling this will be one of my top reads of the year already.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Excrement, Medical content, and Religious bigotry