Reviews with content warning for Rape - Der Report der Magd: Roman

Borrowed from my local library.

A classic of dystopian fiction that somehow I hadn't read before! It took me a while to get into the story and the writing, but once I did I enjoyed it.

Don't get me wrong, this is a heavy read, and one I had to take my time with so I had some space to process. I tend to avoid books that include talk of

pregnancy, birth and fertility

as they're a big trigger for me, so I went into this knowing they would come up & that I would need time to take breaks from the story.

It made me feel a lot of things: rage, a whole load of frustration, sadness and fear, but some hope was peppered in there too. The hardest thing about this book is just how plausible it is. This could totally happen, and we're seeing it happen across parts of the world right now, and that brought a lot of reflection on my own standing in soceity as a woman. My own fears and concerns. My own knowledge of how fragile my rights and freedom perhaps are.

The purposeful altering of names stood out to me in this book too, and made me think about the power of a name for self-identity, but also for ownership and power (especially when that's held by someone else)

On the whole, an incredible book. One I may bump up to 5☆ if it sticks with me like I think it will, and one I would encourage everyone to read at least once (even if dysopian isn't your thing)

Note: I didn't love the final chapter, Historical Notes. I can see what it added to the story and why it was included, but the story felt like it ended for me when Offred stopped speaking.

Content Warnings

cassidyfrench's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

isolated_matrix's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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? It's complicated

4.5

Content Warnings

sestout's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense 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? No

4.5

Content Warnings

katie0528's review against another edition

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dark sad tense slow-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? No

3.5

I've never actually picked up this book until now, despite being an advid watcher of the TV show. The book follows "Offred" as she serves as a "Handmaid" in an alternate timeline. While some aspects of the book still really hit home in 2024, I think I was just expecting more. Offred's knowledge of the world around her is very limited, at least that she is willing to share in the story, and while that makes sense, I just wish we could see more of the world and the resistance or lack thereof. The fall of America is only briefly alluded to despite Offred living through it, and the epilogue set in the far future with mock historians discussing the book offers little additional clarity to the settings or characters.

Content Warnings

linaboa's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
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

3.0

Content Warnings

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