Reviews tagging 'Torture'

La casa de los espíritus (Edición especial 40 aniversario) by Isabel Allende

179 reviews

meredith_williams_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

Este libro es un verdadero clásico. Aunque para mi fue una lectura difícil (pasé casi un año leyéndolo 😅) es una historia importante e inolvidable que explora lo que significa ser humano, la mezcla de lo bueno y lo malo que existe en el mundo, y los ciclos que se repitan generación tras generación. El realismo mágico mezclado con el comentario sociopolítico es ingenioso y leerlo después de las elecciones más recientes aquí en Estados Unidos fue casi como leer un aviso del pasado para nuestro futuro posible. Aunque había cosas que pasaron al final que me frustraron mucho, reconozco la realidad que se refleja en los eventos que ocurrieron y me quedo inspirado por las últimas palabras narradas por la protagonista al final:

“Me será muy difícil vengar a todos los que tienen que ser vengados, porque mi venganza no sería más que otra parte del mismo rito inexorable. Quiero que mi oficio es la vida y que mi misión no es prolongar el odio…”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, War, and Classism

Moderate: Violence, Abortion, and Pregnancy

Minor: Addiction, Vomit, and Car accident

kd_thompson's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Torture, and Violence

kapsygabby's review against another edition

challenging informative

3.75

Wow. First, I want to start with how I stepped into this genre I would normally not read. I heard this book and Isabel Allende recommended when I went on a recent trip in Santiago, Chile and it definitely lives up to informing the reader about the dark history of this country and strong spirit of its people. 
There is a reason I don’t usually read this genre though and struggled with this book: because of the real life situations and terrors (see the list of content warnings) that are very real on this planet. I don’t mind being educated about the world with nonfiction books because you are able to stand at a safe distance. I don’t enjoy it when it enters fiction and especially when you’re inside the head of these terrible people. Feeling what they feel and thinking what they think. It makes my skin crawl. 
Without any specific spoilers but clear content expectations: let me just say very early in the book we are introduced to a character and see the world through his eyes as he objectifies and brutally rapes prepubescent girls. This is a main character we have to continue to see through the book and (of course) there is no apology or remorse for the way he dehumanized others. These actions are key to the plot but I had a very hard time getting through this. It did not need to be so explicit and detailing of his thoughts. Plenty of other disturbing events were shared with less detail and still held the proper weight to story. I loathe how, even this day, men around the world continue to do this exact same or worse and continue to not change their way of thinking and seeing women as things. There is no catharsis or justice. Life just goes on and I can’t stand it. 
There are many amazing characters, particularly women characters in this book. Do not get me wrong. But I will continue to be sick to my stomach when I think of this book and this character - who I can never think of as “a product of his time” since I know men continue to abuse power in exactly the same way to this day. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Torture, and War

lovetlr's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, and War

franzys_whip's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Murder, Lesbophobia, and War

crumpledjuicebox's review against another edition

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

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Content Warnings

Minor: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Blood

ohilucy's review against another edition

challenging medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Torture

kayaelena's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring mysterious reflective tense

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

alyssaakdefusco's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective slow-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? Yes

4.25

A whole journey! I absolutely love generational historical fiction like this. And I'll start backwards by saying the last several chapters absolutely FLOORED me. I was crying by the last page. The only reason I'm not giving 5 stars is that this book is loooong and it had me feeling confused by some of the character choices up until the very end! It took me a while to read. Parts of it were sluggish and a lot of really crappy stuff happens. Plus for most of the book you're bounced back and forth by a 3rd person narrator and then a 1st person narration by the main male character of the book who is a racist r*pist, so that really threw me off. But seriously, it is worth a read just to get to the end. I've never experienced that much of a turnaround with a book and so much justification for such a long and hard to read first 3/4 of a book! Phew. It's helpful to do some research about the historical context of Chile in the 1st half of the 20th century too because Allende is ultimately telling that story through the lens of this family. I didn't realize that until about half way through! My bad. Anyways, here's my favorite passage from the book that sums up what I loved so much about it and what was revealed to me at the very end:

"She was one of those stoical, practical women of our country, the kind of woman who has a child with every man who passes through her life and, on top of that, takes in other people's abandoned children, her own poor relatives, and anybody who needs a mother, sister, or an aunt; the kind of woman who's the pillar of many other lives, who raises children to grow up and leave her and lets men leave her too, without a word of reproach, because she has more pressing things to worry about. She looked like so many others I had met...I told her she had an enormous risk in rescuing me, and she smiled. It was then I understood that the days of the fascists were numbered, because they have not been able to destroy the spirit of these women."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Incest, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Abortion, and Murder

dollarsignimp's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Grief, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Car accident, Murder, Pregnancy, and War