Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Deliver Me by Elle Nash

7 reviews

brotestantethic's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-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

4.0

CHECK CWs!!!
A complete rollercoaster of a novel, which I almost DNFed at the beginning. It starts out grotesque, with taboo sexuality (calling her partner exclusively “Daddy,” sex with bugs crawling over their bodies, etc.), graphic depictions of chicken slaughter, and way too much going on. Of course, the first few chapters set the stage for the shitshow that builds Daisy Adams’ character.

I found the pining after Sloane largely unnecessary until realizing that Daisy was so completely obsessed with her, and then I found myself drawn into that plotline.

In my opinion, when people want something grotesque and weird, this is the extreme of that. Certainly way more intense than most mainstream “unhinged woman” books. Most everyone in this novel is completely deplorable. Some points off for wordiness, I do think there were still a lot of unnecessary pieces. The religious imagery and speak went over my head, to be completely honest. The ending, though, haunted me to my core.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Violence, Stalking, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Fatphobia, and Sexual violence

sarah_bookshelf's review

dark slow-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

4.5

I ... do not know how to describe this book. This author takes you places. Some of those are specific locations described in just enough detail for you to feel like you're there, some of them are dark holes inside the mind of someone who has no hope or support system. I have gone from physically nauseous to jubilant in the process of reading this, and I'm not sure I can explain how. This book explores things about ourselves and our culture that we try not to talk about. It makes its home in the mind of a lost soul that society has let down. And she's got nothing to lose. OMG READ THE TRIGGER WARNINGS. I will be spending a few weeks trying to understand why I enjoyed this, and contacting some therapists.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Gore, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual violence, Violence, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Death, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Sexual harassment

ariizolas's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

hollywobble's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

chubbyboof's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship

kassietheresa's review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship

Honestly, there is so much graphic content in this book. Do not read if you are on the fence (super good book, but also very disturbing).

heather_harrison's review against another edition

dark emotional fast-paced

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

3.5

“Even if I have thought the rules were stupid, I couldn’t break my conditioning” - Dee Dee, Deliver Me. 

What the hell did I just read? This takes steps beyond a fever dream into a waking nightmare. 

This was a fantastic reflection on how conservative Christianity warps the expectations of women and motherhood, the cycle of poverty and abuse, and the insanity that is the experience of pregnancy. 

Our protagonist Dee Dee is enigmatic and bizarre.

What this story does is so well executed, but there is so much graphic violence, body horror, trauma and disturbing imagery that it is a hell of a journey to get there. 

“Cults come and go… but the Pentecostal Church is forever” 

Final point - Dee Dee only referring to her partner as Daddy was so disturbing, and caused me to nearly DNF at the beginning of the book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Infertility, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Infidelity, Sexism, Sexual violence, Blood, Stalking, and Death of parent

TW: Religious trauma