Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King

21 reviews

yellowpurple500's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-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

4.5

The scariest king book I've read so far. I genuinely had a jump scare at one point. If you find real life situations scarier than things like monsters, this is the horror story for you.

There are no chapters. Just one long story as told from the narrator in one sitting. This added so much to the story. It felt like I was right there in the room. The accents are shown through stylistic spelling choices which also adding to this as you read the whole book from this perspective. 

This book is going to linger with me for awhile. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

venusdapoopiehead's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-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

4.75

absolutely devoured this book tbh. i loved the complexity of dolores character and understanding her motives and why she did the things she did-and how despite what she did, she did it for love, for her children, because she’s simply just a mother trying her best, who wants nothing but the absolute best for her kids. would i consider her a monster? no, moreso just a misunderstood mother trying to reclaim her agency and fight against the injustice inflicted upon her and her kids. but most importantly, she’s human. a flawed human, but nonetheless a human we can all somewhat relate to in a way.

fair warning though, this book isn’t for everyone. there’s no chapters and the writing is just a stream of consciousness, with a thick southern accent throughout. there’s also some dark subjects (obviously because it’s horror) discussed-so make sure to check out content warnings. but if you’re fine with all that, then this might be the book for you.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexism, and Murder

Moderate: Death, Pedophilia, and Violence

Minor: Racial slurs

finnsnowbevi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

pinyata's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This is my 3rd time reading this in the span of (i think) a decade, and it still remains as my favorite book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Incest, Racial slurs, and Violence

siobhanward's review against another edition

dark fast-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

This was told as a single, 300 page long stream of consciousness narrative, which I find can be really hit or miss. In this case, it was well done, Dolores was an interesting and surprisingly sympathetic character and the story kept me guessing the whole time. It took a little bit to wrap my head around the style and the writing, but this felt so different than most of what I've read from King that I really enjoyed reading it. I'm also glad that I wasn't just making stuff up when I was picturing Kathy Bates as Dolores the whole time. I thought that I might have just been mixing this up with <i> Misery </i>, but it turns out she played the lead in both movies.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Incest, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol

Minor: Car accident

trisjt's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Violence and Murder

Minor: Incest, Racial slurs, and Dementia

taliatalksbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Just finished Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King in honor of the Eclipse taking place today. It felt like a very fitting read, and not that I expected anything less from one and only Stephen King, it delivered. While I hope no one follows in Dolores’s footsteps during the eclipse, I loved the format of this account. I don’t quite know if I would have liked the format from any other author, but for King’s style, it works pretty flawlessly. My one complaint is that the lack of chapters makes it hard to put down and read over multiple sittings. Not impossible, just difficult. You have to pick your moments of natural pauses to stop, and I just found there weren’t many of them. This feels like it is meant to be read in one shot, and if you can manage that, all the power to you! The pacing and flow were great, and I really wish I could have read it all in one sitting to get the narrative as Andy would have heard it in that room. I think the characters felt real, and though they suffered trauma throughout, it made them feel more realistic and grounded in the story. Though not my favorite SK novel (That spot is still reserved for Misery) there is definitely a reason why King is known for his writing, and this is certainly another great example. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

lizalopes's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

This book is the first book to ever truly terrify me. I had tears in my eyes closing the last pages. I feel like the characters became my friends. Fantastic read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

zoinkie's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Incest, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder

kreglow's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious 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: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Dementia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail