Reviews tagging 'Rape'

The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

67 reviews

rkpaulson96's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious relaxing 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? Yes

5.0

Stuart Turton did it again! His second novel is a fun, puzzle-within-several-puzzles mystery thriller. The characters are just as complex as the supernatural-tinted conundrum facing the passengers and crew of the ship, Saardam, on whose decks a demon allegedly prowls. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

theasi's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Blood, and Grief

achubb's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

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

3.75

The combination of historical fiction along with mystery thriller was not one I'd expect to enjoy this much. Turton does a great job of keeping the reader hooked and asking questions throughout. It did take a bit of time to get going but the characters presented have a nice depth to them.
I especially enjoyed the grey area of morality throughout. Each person viewed the situations in a unique way that helped bring the story to life.

The ending was not as satisfying as I hoped. It's wrapped up a little too nicely in the last few pages.

Arent viewed Sammy as the only person he knew without corrupt morals. To discover his friend is just as bad as his Uncle was a great twist but then suddenly everyone's happy and in agreement? I would have preferred it to be left with a bit of mystery to muse over. I dont buy the sudden agreement of everyone. How do they forgive that easily and not question it further?
I enjoyed the questions I was left with. How many cases did Sammy fake the culprit of? Was he the true murderer for some of his cases considering his history? I wish this was explored/hinted at more

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Blood

Moderate: Animal death and Vomit

Minor: Rape

sandysmith's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

I'm gradually adding books I've read in 2021 to give a true reflection of the books I've read since keeping records.  This was the first book I read in 2021, and is what kick started my reading journey having put reading on the back burner whilst bringing up the children, previously being an avid reader.  Based in 1634 regarding a shops Voyage. A thriller of sorts, with devilish or supernatural symbols and a murder.  Arent Hayes is a body guard to a great detective Samuel Pepys kept under guard. It was a good read until the disappointing ending and it seemed to loose its way. It was a long book anyway but the ending seemed a completely different pace to the rest of the book. That said I really liked it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Violence, Blood, Excrement, and Vomit

Moderate: Animal death and War

chromiumboron's review

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

He kinda lost me in the last third, but overall I really enjoyed this book!! I've had a hard time reading lately, but these strong female characters had me tearing through this. Can't wait to read what Turton writes next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Sexual harassment, and War

Moderate: Medical content

Minor: Rape

thebookkeepers's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

A closed door mystery aboard a ship traveling from Batavia to Amsterdam, this story will have you questioning who’s behind murders or if something paranormal is afoot. While I wasn’t overly endeared to any of the characters, I did enjoy seeing the multiple POVs and how intricate the character dynamics were. I did not guess any of the twists & was satisfied with the conclusion of our mystery. The format in which the unveiling of the secrets was a miss for me though. It felt like a recap of here’s how XYZ happened and was a little to “wrapped up” for me. My son (15) LOVED this though and I can see this being more Men-Lit (is that a thing? Haha opposite of chick lit). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Domestic abuse, and Rape

rochelleisreading's review

informative mysterious medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Drug use, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Physical abuse and Alcohol

librarianeno's review

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

I loved this book up until the last chapter. I was disappointed by the ending and it really colored my overall feeling about the book. It kept me engaged and wondering about what was happening and who had committed all the crimes that were happening. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Violence

delienn's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

The book was a treat to read, and I thought Stuart Turton even improved since his first book, which I had already loved! Great pace, lovable characters, and an interesting resolution. I enjoyed every moment reading it!
As a side note, I would recomend this book even for people who are sensitive to some trigger warnings, because in my opinion, the story mentions or shows dark things, but is never gruesome and chooses an appropriate level of detail.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Rape, Torture, Vomit, Pregnancy, and War

disguisedposer's review

adventurous mysterious 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Rape

Minor: Rape