Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann

95 reviews

mflynn8908'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? It's complicated

3.0

Ok I’m in the minority but this was SOOOO slow and I struggled reading it. The beginning was so strong and literally had me consumed but then everything just turned cringe and slow. I mean I’m not a fan of the author making the older sister sound like an over the top exaggeration of a human while Cora is just this super cool and amazing girl (without even trying). Then Dean literally loving Cora the whole time he was engaged to her sister but he just kept it to himself and pretended to go along with the hate Cora gave him. YUCK! That was sooo cringe. 
I was team Mandy when she basically sent Cora to hell for failing for her fiancé and then sleeping with him so soon after their breakup. I get that they were trauma bonded but COME ON… it was your SISTERS man and you just his bones not while she still had a tan line from that ring on her hand. No. Just no. Not to mention their mom being like “oh we knew Dean loved you the whole time but he was faithful to your sister so we just let it go”… like WHAT??? If I was Mandy I’d disown the whole family and send them all a shit filled box for the holidays. 
I think all the issues I had with this book just didn’t motivate me to want to finish reading it and getting to the end of the book was a chore because I just didn’t care about the characters once they escaped Earl. I can see why it’s so hyped up but to me it’s a little too hyped. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Gun violence, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

paperbacksandsnacks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I had only read one Jennifer Hartmann prior to this, and that also ripped my heart out and sewed it back in. This is no different. 

I'm beginning to learn that no one writes emotion and chemistry in the same way. I cannot tell you how many times I cried reading this. It was an absolute rollercoaster 

I was messaging my friend the whole way through like "omg, I'm crying again" 

I think despite the taboo elements it was all handled really respectfully and it landed really well (for me anyway) I can see why some wouldn't enjoy some of these tropes. I also think it has the potential to be very triggering so check CW's for sure! 

Dean has a slice of my heart. What a guy!

If anyone needs me I'll be thinking about this book and probably crying again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

carlydianne's review

dark emotional tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, and Murder

toasterstrubes's review

dark emotional tense medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Rape, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Miscarriage and Murder

blumerlamotte's review

challenging 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? It's complicated

3.75

Heart wrenching, intense, dark, complicated. Check the trigger warnings. They’re no joke. This novel is NOT for the faint of heart.

Folks seem to either love or hate this novel. I swear reviewers either give it 5 stars or 1 star. I’m really torn. Unsure how I feel about it. It started so strong (but extremely hard to read) and from there… the character development was convoluted and messy and erratic. I think that follows with the excessive trauma the characters had to deal with. For me I think it just felt a little too contrived and not quite authentic enough. 

It’s a good book with awful topics. The authors writing style is smooth and easy to follow. Something about it just left me wanting but I don’t know what I want …

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Pregnancy

rdaacvhiesl's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.75

If you can make it through the triggers and initial taboo, this is a unique love story that will stick with you for all the right reasons. Everything written had a purpose and never was used as a prop or just shock value. I applaud Jennifer Hartmann for masterfully toeing that line in order to share this beautifully traffic and harrowing story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Dementia, Stalking, and Alcohol

Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Blood, Vomit, Car accident, and Death of parent

katsa6's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

What a gut wrenching powerful book looking at trauma, survival, depression and darkness. It is a tragic love story that you really can't see the light in but is so mesmerizing that it kept me glued to it. Cora and Dean are about to be in laws as Dean is going to marry Mandy- Cora's sister until a twist of fate has them stuck in a serial killers basement trying to survive. It is all their stories from the past to the present. It hurt. It made me cry. I felt so much for all the characters. I could feel all their pain. Check your trigger warnings as this had alot of disturbing and sad things that happen. Worth the read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Abortion

hailiejo's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

brooksie03051's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad 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

An unexpected 5 star for a horrific tale of trauma, heart break, and healing. Tragic events that change the lives of several people and their steps to try and survive PTSD. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, and Murder

susansantos's review

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

This book is so different than other dark romance books I’ve read. I loved the story and felt the struggles of the FMC and MMC so hard. There were a couple quotes in the book that resonated with me and that I could connect with on a deep level. It’s both sad and happy and admittedly I did cry. Check triggers before reading, but it’s truly beautiful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Grief