Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Lisey's Story by Stephen King

16 reviews

steepedinbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.5

I’ve heard that this can be a pretty divisive novel among King fans. It seems it’s one that people either love or hate. I loved it. It was a bit slow to start, but it kept me intrigued throughout. A sure sign of a good book, for me, is when I stop now and again to read passages out loud to my husband, little things I found funny or bits of particularly striking writing. I did that often with this book. I really connected with the way King wrote about grief and loss. I was also struck by how he depicted the twisted up and confused kind of love a child can still have for an abusive parent. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

dilani's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

4.0

Pretty smucking great for my first Stephen King novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Cursing, and Mental illness

felofhe's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

bookbelle5_17's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

This is a novel about Lisey's grief over the loss of her husband Scott Landon, who was a famous author, from two years ago. Not only is she haunted by her husband but she is targeted by a hitman who wants Scott's unpublished manuscripts. On top of that, she has to help her sister, Amanda, has become catatonic again after she gets her heartbroken by her boyfriend.
Lisey's story comes off as a cross between Rose Madder and Pet Sematary. All three stories deal with grief, love, and finding your own strength. This is King, so like the other two this novel has some supernatural. The human antagonist reminded me of Shotter Shooter from the novella "Secret Garden, Secret Window" To cope with his demons Scott creates another world that he escapes too and takes Lisey along for the ride. This one not only deals with grief but also with mental health issues as Scott's family had a sickness that made them savage. Lisey feels real and relatable, especially with her relationship with her sister's. They didn't always agree or along, but they loved each other. This one is one of the stories where the horror isn't about a monster but about humans and the supernatural is secondary to Lisey's journey.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death

bringonthenight's review against another edition

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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment

Moderate: Stalking and Suicide attempt

Minor: Vomit

drbassin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder