Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins

17 reviews

alima's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Strong character development? No

1.5

The characters felt hollow, and the “twists” were so telegraphed that they were never a surprise. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death

Minor: Self harm

the_bookish_owl's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Self harm, Violence, and Murder

dkamada's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

So many twists and red herrings!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, and Gaslighting

abbysbooked's review against another edition

2.0

This book is the story of traumatic events. 

Every bad thing that could happen to someone managed to be incorporated into this book - in some instances it was sadly comical because you had to just say “oh, of course, why not”. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Blood, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, and Abandonment

Minor: Animal death, Incest, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault

readingwithbec's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, and Car accident

meliemelo's review against another edition

dark tense 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

2.75

 Crime novels aren't known for their boundless optimism, but this one seemed especially bleak. While crafting very nuanced characters, Paula Hawkins did not care for making them likeable with the exception of Irene and, to a point, Laura. The "One who got away" chapters were an interesting enough idea but ended up being a bit repetitive and didn't bring much to the book in the end (and the end of that particular thread had me roll my eyes). Finally, I felt the book lacked tension and purpose beyond the "whodunnit", and even that didn't keep my interest up much.

It's not a bad crime novel, and there were definitely some very good ideas in there, but it definitely doesn't compare to the author's previous works. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Incest, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Death of parent

risemini's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious 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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Car accident, Murder, Alcohol, and Classism

thefictionalhevschwar's review against another edition

funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Dementia

karinaalyse's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

I liked the book overall, HOWEVER I did feel like the twists could’ve been better. It felt obvious half way through, but it still makes you want to turn the pages to the end. The characters didn’t necessarily develop to me, but there is a variety of them, and they’re all different so it keeps it interesting. It has some dark themes, but some parts of it felt underdeveloped and unnecessary. Overall, a good book, I would recommend but it isn’t amazing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm and Murder

Moderate: Violence

lookaclara's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Rape, Self harm, Blood, and Murder