Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

184 reviews

rionstorm's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful sad 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

4.75

Really loved this! Love a tragic romance, and thought the ending was satisfying if (obviously) sad.

The character development was really well done, felt gradual and natural.

Spoiler

It felt balanced how Patroclus almost rose to meet Achilles in his own way, becoming known for his talents and abilities, and Achilles at the end was almost knocked back a bit to meet Patroclus in his more substantial mortality. I particularly liked the line towards the end, after having Achilles portrayed as invulnerable and unbeatable for so long, when Paris begins to mention the myth of Achilles' heel and invincibility, and is cut off by Apollo reminding him that he is mortal and can be killed. Really grounds Achilles' character all of a sudden.

 

I read it after Circe, and I found the difference in how certain things (especially stuff relating to women, marriage, and assault) are talked about really interesting. This one was definitely a bit more difficult to read in that sense, as sexual assault in particular is talked about relatively flippantly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Abandonment, War, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Rape, Child abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Self harm, and Outing

uranaishi's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Domestic abuse, Murder, Rape, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Death, Death of parent, Classism, Mental illness, Bullying, Outing, Physical abuse, Confinement, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Abandonment, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Xenophobia, Gore, Sexual harassment, Animal death, Alcohol, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, and Child death

emjbarnes's review against another edition

adventurous emotional lighthearted reflective 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: Self harm, Murder, and Blood

Moderate: Rape, Animal death, Sexual violence, War, Outing, Medical content, Homophobia, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, and Misogyny

Minor: Pregnancy

arrowsartsandbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

A book that is gay, sad, and has mythology sounds like a book written specifically for me. The Song Of Achilles is the retelling of Achilles and Patroclus and their life-long relationship. The writing is very detailed and emotional. The only complaint I have about is that the pacing was really weird and uneven.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Murder, and Vomit

Moderate: Rape

Minor: Self harm

rebss's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

god, this book crushed me. 
even re-reading it, I cried multiple times throughout the book (reasonably). 

it is gut-wrenching and devastating near the end of the book. the ending just..gosh.

Spoiler

after patroclus' died, dying for achilles, was heartbreaking. and achilles afterwards, known as the 'rage of achilles' because of the things he did after patroclus' death. that is how much they loved eachother.

achilles and patroclus' love for one another is so pure and honest, this book is so beautifully written. "he is half of my soul, as the poetry say." and other quotes just...had me in constantly emotional distress and awe. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, War, Misogyny, Murder, Death, Grief, Blood, Rape, Self harm, and Sexual assault

ankiaisreading's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Toxic relationship, Death, Murder, Violence, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Blood, Child death, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, War, Pregnancy, Outing, Kidnapping, Incest, Genocide, Torture, Suicide attempt, and Sexual content

Moderate: Hate crime, Domestic abuse, Death, Homophobia, Gore, Emotional abuse, Blood, Alcohol, Genocide, Child abuse, and Bullying

lauracollins096's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Murder, Sexual assault, War, Grief, Slavery, Blood, Colonisation, Sexual violence, and Rape

Moderate: Homophobia, Pregnancy, and Self harm

jvz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad 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: Death, Self harm, Rape, War, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Grief, Physical abuse, and Slavery

kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-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? Yes

4.0

Mostly lives up to the hype! I think this is better written and more heart-wrenching than Circe, but tbh I actually enjoyed that one more! I was rooting for Circe most of the time, or at least feeling with her; it was a bit hard to feel anything but a numb sort of pity for Achilles and Patroclus by the end. Locked into their fate both by greedy adults and their own pride, I knew where the story was heading so it was less emotional on the way. The giant time skip didn’t help; at one point they said they were 27 and I was like !?!?!??

The post-Patroclus bit, while necessary, really dragged and just rubbed salt in the wound 😭 intentionally, but jeez 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Death, Suicidal thoughts, War, Violence, Gore, Homophobia, Animal death, Blood, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Grief, Medical content, Sexual content, and Self harm

bg_oseman_fan's review

adventurous emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Even knowing the story of Patroclus and Achilles in broad strokes, i was gripped by the incredible storytelling. The role of legacy and memory in the story was done exceptionally well. the roots of the story shone in a retelling with modern sensibilities intertwined with in. This work is an incredible achievement in writing and adapting a story that for many exists only as a footnote in the large story of the trojan war. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, War, Death, Blood, Gore, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Genocide, Homophobia, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Animal death, Child abuse, Classism, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Slavery, Child death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Kidnapping

Minor: Abandonment, Rape, Cannibalism, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia