Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

15 reviews

_mims_'s review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

3.5

Great dystopian  fiction is great because the reader can see the literary dystopias reflected in our current society. This is certainly not the case with Unwind. The premise was  absurd. A civil war over abortion? It felt a little too silly. I picked up the book, fully prepared to hate it. And I did- at first. However, Shusterman managed to turn his absurd premise into something surprisingly readable. It certainly isn’t Nobel prize worthy, but it was easy entertainment. Would have liked to see more focus on the characters rather than just plot progression. I thought the concept of the tithe was very interesting and would have loved to see more of Lev in the book. Overall, if you just want to turn your brain off for a few hours and enjoy some interesting plot twists, this is a good choice.  Felt a little preachy at some points. 

Romance was not fleshed out at all. Shusterman should either have developed it more thoroughly or left it out entirely. However, it wasn’t just the romance that felt hollow. All of the relationships lacked depth. The dynamic between Lev and the other main characters felt particularly nonsensical. </spoiler >

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma

Moderate: Confinement and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Trafficking, Car accident, and Abortion

touchegiantsquid's review against another edition

dark sad fast-paced

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

3.0

The book tries to "both sides" the debate between pro and anti choice laws for the sake of thrills. I would not say it handled that well.

It's hard to take this dystopia seriously since it seems to lack any theory of how politics works. It's just "what if a bunch of terrible things happened? Wouldn't that be terrible?" It doesn't seem to have anything to say about the debate, it just wants to use it to give the appearance of synthesis at the conclusion.

The craft of the conclusion was good, which is why I didn't rate the book lower.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

magnoliabloomfield's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.0

While it deals with some very delicate and controversial subjects, the author has characters express a range of thoughts, opinions, and feelings on the matter so it doesn’t come across as the author being problematic. Since it was written a while ago it may not have our current level of sensitivity in 2022, but if you keep that in mind and engage your critical thinking I think you can really find the story fascinating if not entertaining. It hooked me pretty well and then toward the end was a chapter that really blew my mind and terrified me in a good way, it was very skillfully done and amazing though dark and terrifying. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

martereadsbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, and War

jpellwood's review against another edition

dark emotional tense 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Murder