Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

The Lighthouse Witches by C.J. Cooke

9 reviews

darquedreamer's review

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Okay, so I had gotten 106 pages into this one before putting it down and taking a break because I was bored to tears. But, I am glad I picked it back up after the break. I didn't quite get the vibes and storyline I was promised, and hoping for, but after a slow 106 pages it did pick up pace and pique my interest enough to finish it. 

The first 106 pages definitely had a pacing issue, as well as just overall boringness, and mild confusion due to the "grimoire" entries from one of the characters. The last 237 pages quickly changed pace, and became less boring, but I still didn't quite feel like they matched the synopsis and vibes that I was after. I think the resolution was okay, but not 100% satisfactory. I don't regret reading this one, but I don't know that I would recommend it to anyone, or have it pop up in my thoughts again after today...

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Child death, Religious bigotry, and Death

lavenderbluestories's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Gore, Religious bigotry, Violence, Blood, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Cancer

hayley_mariep's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Body horror, Death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, and Child abuse

Moderate: Murder, Abandonment, and Miscarriage

Minor: Police brutality, Rape, Cancer, and Alcoholism

karen_lo's review

emotional mysterious tense 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

I absolutely loved this book. 
Perfect for October. The spooky vibes were on point! 
So eerie, so intriguing and it is one of those books that keep you turning page after page because you really don't know what's going to happen, or who to trust. 
The writing style is fantastic, and I really enjoyed the Scottish tales and ambiance, even though sometimes I struggled to understand some words, but nothing that google translate couldn't fix.  
Recommend 100%

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry

Moderate: Terminal illness

Minor: Violence, Sexual assault, Child death, Cancer, Blood, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, and Abandonment

lauraleamariereads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? No

4.0

I absolutely devoured this book. Spooky, creepy, and thrilling atmospheric writing. Characters are flawed but real; they feel authentic and brutally honest. I loved every moment of the plot. Also — that ending was a little shocking but I enjoyed it along with everything else. A beautifully written story. Multi POVs and timeline jumps did not get bogged down with facts, it felt smooth and cohesive in the most puzzle like way.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Rape, Violence, Sexism, Torture, Abandonment, Cancer, Kidnapping, and Terminal illness

kaylaramoutar's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Abandonment, Terminal illness, Sexual assault, Cancer, Death of parent, Violence, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, Torture, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

pollyhall's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

The atomsphere was done well, at times it had me wanting to visit the Scottish Highlands and other times I didn't want to have anything to do with it. I picked up the book and didn't put it down till I was finished.  I loved the character of Basil and his interactions with the girls and the fisherman. Emotionally this book will have you all over the place there are funny sweet parts and other parts that will have you scratching your head in disbelief that people can do things like this to each other.
At the being it was a little confusing with all the points of views. I had to go back and look at the heading of the sections do see who was speaking. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Deportation, Gore, Infertility, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, Blood, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexism, Abandonment, Cancer, Car accident, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence

lilifane's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

A book about a lighthouse on a Scottish island and witches with a beautiful cover? I had to give it a try. But this was so much darker than I expected. 

The story is told from multiple points of view in 3 different timelines.
In 1662 several women on a small Scottish island are accused of being witches and executed. Before dying, one of these women curses the island and its inhabitants.
In 1998 Liv and her 3 daughters Clover (7), Luna (9) and Sapphire (15) come to the island, where Liv is hired to paint a mural inside the Longing, the 100 years old lighthouse built at the spot where the witches were imprisoned during their trial. Soon after their arrival, strange things begin to happen and Liv's children start disappearing. 
In 2021 Luna is still searching for her 2 lost sisters, when she gets the message that Clover has been found...

I really enjoyed the atmosphere on the island, it's history and the mystery. But there were some really dark themes here, and a lot of scenes were very hard to read, even for me. So definitely check trigger warnings beforehand. 
There were aspects of the story I did not expect at first but was pleasantly surprised by them. I think they are handled really well and lead to a satisfying conclusion. I liked how the story is plottet, and how you slowly realize what is happening. But it's heartbreaking. I think I cried straight through the last 20-30% of the book just thinking about it. 
This story shows perfectly how the irrational fear of something you don't understand can cause a lot of pain for a lot of people, even generations. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Cancer, Confinement, Medical content, and Terminal illness

Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Drug use, and Murder

scarlettreadsbooks's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Cancer, Car accident, Child death, Death of parent, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, and Violence