Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

10 reviews

rebeccaquinton's review

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Blood, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Pregnancy, Rape, and Abortion

shelfofunread's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Death of parent, Death, Murder, Sexual content, and Infidelity

Minor: Pregnancy

katewhite77's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

A Gripping Yarn

Shamefully my first Atwood in decades. I now know what all the fuss is about as she can certainly write beautifully and I won't be leaving it so long before trying some more of her work. 

This novel is based on true historical events and tells the story of Grace Marks an infamous murderess (or was she!) of the 19th century. 

I certainly learnt a lot about religious beliefs and practices of the time and the changing attitudes towards mental illness. 

However I did find some aspects of the sub plot a little hard to believe but maybe that was all part of Atwood's plan to add an extra layer of very dark humour to the story. I will leave it up to you, the potential future reader to decide.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness and Misogyny

yolanda_h's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Blood, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Pregnancy

jolibon4e's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

Rarely is there such an unreadable and boring book. To be honest part of it may have been that I had completely different expectations but I am very disappointed. Truly I have no idea why the points of view were constantly changing, why was there so much description of random stuff that did not amount of anything. Like, the only thing I get from the book is that men are inherently sleazy and evil and all women ever do is suffer. Sure, but I don’t need 400 pages of this, there is nothing profound in that? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Death

Moderate: Pregnancy, Rape, and Abortion

Minor: Fatphobia

katievh's review against another edition

challenging mysterious slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Child abuse

Moderate: Infidelity, Drug abuse, Classism, Abortion, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Confinement

Minor: Alcoholism, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Body shaming

g_monaghan's review

dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

alexxrose's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

A beautifully written book with twists and turns expertly crafted out of real life discrepancies. Based on the true story of the Kinnear Montgomery Murders in Upper Canada (present-day Ontario) this fictional retelling places you in and out of the minds of not only confessed murderess Grace Marks but also a fictional doctor of the mind, Simon Jordan, who has been tasked with determining Marks' mental state. 
Atwood blends historical fact and assumption together to create a narrative that questions memory, intention, spirituality, and societal interests. The characters are well crafted and complex, creating vivid and real scenarios that keep the reader intrigued from start to finish. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, and Mental illness

Minor: Vomit

theinfinitebookcase's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

Moderate: Physical abuse, Abortion, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

alannah_m's review

challenging emotional mysterious slow-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

I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would! Although it could easily have been a book of half the length I think. I went back and forth with the core mystery throughout the narrative, but I actually spent more time reflecting on Grace's upbringing and her narrative voice, which is really strong. 

Pet Theory for this book: MARY WHITNEY ISN'T REAL

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, and Misogyny

Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, and Forced institutionalization