hannahleila's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The pace of this one threw me. It started off well then got quite slow in the middle. The last 50 pages or so it picked up again and felt a bit rushed.
Also for a book that’s had so many editions released this was full of typos and punctuation where it shouldn’t be. I’m not talking the odd comma, but full stops in the middle of sentences.
Also for a book that’s had so many editions released this was full of typos and punctuation where it shouldn’t be. I’m not talking the odd comma, but full stops in the middle of sentences.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Pregnancy, and Rape
Moderate: Suicide and Death
Minor: Racial slurs and Homophobia
livthatsme's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Pregnancy, and Rape
Moderate: Medical content and Medical trauma
Minor: Sexual assault, Stalking, and Emotional abuse
kryskross's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Racism and Homophobia
iloponis's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
hail rosemary
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Rape, and Emotional abuse
gabberjaws's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Firstly, I wanna say that I hate that I enjoyed the movie adaptation of this book (fuck you, Polanski).
Secondly, there's a reason why this book and its movie are talked about as much as they are. They're good.
The general ... oddness of the events that take place in this book, as well as Levin's matter-of-fact writing make this a very tense novel. Watching this horror that Rosemary was forced to go through unfold was deeply disturbing and even sickening at times.
I'd seen the movie before I read the book, so I'm not entire sure if this was just because I was coming into things with the knowledge of how things played out, but not once did it feel like I, the reader, was supposed to believe that Rosemary was imagining things. I don't know what it was, but something about Levin's writing made it crystal clear when the villains were lying or manipulating Rosemary. You could sense their panic when something was going wrong with their plans. I appreciated that - especially in a story about a woman being gaslit and manipulated from almost the very first page, it's nice that the narration was able to say, "yeah, no, this is fucked up. These people are evil."
I also appreciated how the book highlighted Guy's shitiness. The movie sorta focused more on the Castavets, but the book is constantly showing us how fucking awful Guy is, and I for one am glad because that man is an absolute shitstain of a human being and does not deserve to have his actions downplayed.
All in all, this book was great at evoking strong feelings of discomfort, disgust, unease, and visceral hatred. Just what you want in a horror novel.
Secondly, there's a reason why this book and its movie are talked about as much as they are. They're good.
The general ... oddness of the events that take place in this book, as well as Levin's matter-of-fact writing make this a very tense novel. Watching this horror that Rosemary was forced to go through unfold was deeply disturbing and even sickening at times.
I'd seen the movie before I read the book, so I'm not entire sure if this was just because I was coming into things with the knowledge of how things played out, but not once did it feel like I, the reader, was supposed to believe that Rosemary was imagining things. I don't know what it was, but something about Levin's writing made it crystal clear when the villains were lying or manipulating Rosemary. You could sense their panic when something was going wrong with their plans. I appreciated that - especially in a story about a woman being gaslit and manipulated from almost the very first page, it's nice that the narration was able to say, "yeah, no, this is fucked up. These people are evil."
I also appreciated how the book highlighted Guy's shitiness. The movie sorta focused more on the Castavets, but the book is constantly showing us how fucking awful Guy is, and I for one am glad because that man is an absolute shitstain of a human being and does not deserve to have his actions downplayed.
All in all, this book was great at evoking strong feelings of discomfort, disgust, unease, and visceral hatred. Just what you want in a horror novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Body horror, Gaslighting, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Racial slurs and Homophobia
analice's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Homophobia and Racism
whatellisreadnext's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really really enjoyed this, which was a nice surprise. I'm always a little dubious of any book written more than 20 years ago, but this was fab. I've felt super slumpy all month, but this was so easy to follow and so very readable. Not particularly scary, but dark and definitely perfect for spooky season.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
liviab13's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
tysuckz's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
4.0
Quite possibly one of the weirdest books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. The ending was marginally disappointing but despite the absolute bizarre nature of it, it was easy to read, having finished the whole thing in a matter of 3 hours or something close.
Felt bad for Rosemary but also felt absolutely furious for her too with the way everyone was so against her except Hutch. Was so frustrating to feel that kind of struggle alongside her, especially as she is/was a pregnant woman.
Didn't get 5 stars based on the ending alone. I wish there would've been more to it and maybe some kind of resolution for the horrible things that happened to her based on everyone's opposition to her. It is the least she deserved!!
Having said that, the gaslighting from Guy especially is so intense. I knew quite a bit about the book in the first place since it was recommended to me by my partner, but even still I felt like Rosemary was going crazy and was genuinely just having paranoid delusion about Witches!!!
Felt bad for Rosemary but also felt absolutely furious for her too with the way everyone was so against her except Hutch. Was so frustrating to feel that kind of struggle alongside her, especially as she is/was a pregnant woman.
Didn't get 5 stars based on the ending alone. I wish there would've been more to it and maybe some kind of resolution for the horrible things that happened to her based on everyone's opposition to her. It is the least she deserved!!
Having said that, the gaslighting from Guy especially is so intense. I knew quite a bit about the book in the first place since it was recommended to me by my partner, but even still I felt like Rosemary was going crazy and was genuinely just having paranoid delusion about Witches!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Rape
curiouslykatt's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Gaslighting