Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter

14 reviews

ciebeanie's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

for perspective i did this collection for my a-level coursework and to this day i still go back and reread it. despite the pain it caused me i routinely return!

angela carter is a master of prose. she revels in the dark, the gory and the sexual and boy does she do it well - these short stories will leave you thinking about them for weeks. deeply entwined with the second wave of feminism and themes of female identity and sexuality, carter’s work is unrestrained and shines brilliantly because of it, even in all of its complexity. the deeper you start to dive into these stories, the more you find, though they’re certainly enjoyable as surface-level fairy tales, too!

my personal favourites are ‘the bloody chamber’, ‘the erl king’ and ‘the tiger’s bride’. if you’re a fan of british band wolf alice, this collection is where they got their name from.

i would very heavily recommend carter’s essay ‘the sadeian woman’ as an accompaniment to this collection, as it explores more explicitly her thoughts on pornography and women’s sexuality. speaking of which - this book does not shy away from darker topics, though it does handle them with grace, complexity and thought (and the occasional bite of humour to balance the equation). carter was master of her craft and this is arguably her magnum opus - enjoy!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Animal cruelty

rowanelisa's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

mericat's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, and Gaslighting

river_dithers's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

I read this book for the second time, and I love it just as much! Carter's command of words is incredible, and I had to reach for my phone to find meanings of certain words. That does not mean it wasn't beautiful. My favourite story was Lady of the House of Love, and I loved the tortured characters. The beastliness of this collection is surprising, but enticing. It forced me to confront my own preconceptions about femininity and humanity.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny

Moderate: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Injury/Injury detail

amu_m3's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-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? N/A

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Ableism, Slavery, and Torture

suzylit's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

A landmark in the feminine literary tradition. Four decades later those fairytale retellings still ring true.
I was just a little frustrated by some of the stories I would have wanted more of.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

andy_sfc_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

I’m conflicted about this book because the writing is beautiful and so descriptive. You can literally see and feel everything that Angela Carter is writing. However, some of the content (even though I’m aware that the purpose of this book is to be discomforting) is so uncomfortable to read like The Snow Child. What was that?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Classism

hashpole's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, and Murder

ivana's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

My favourite story was The Lady of the House of Love

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

djinnandtea's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

I enjoyed this collection a lot. Carter’s versions of "Bluebeard," "Beauty and the Beast," and "Little Red Riding Hood," among others, were beautiful, lush, and dense to my out-of-practice English major eye. I got a lot out of these takes on some folklore classics. Evocative and meaningful, these are the kind of stories that benefit from multiple readings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Child death

Folktales are bloody and violent; Carter doesn't shy away from any of that.