Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

House of Whispers by Anna Mazzola

3 reviews

loey_h's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, and Classism

stabilesero's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.75

I loved this. Mazzola has produced a historical fiction with a gothic edge.
I didn't know a lot about Italy's part in the second world war, but this has given me some topics to look further into for non-fiction which I always love with a historical fiction; giving the reader something less known to research (if that's they're thing, which it is for me!)
Eva's story is one of discovering who she is, what part she plays in the world and what she really wants in life. At times in the beginning, I really thought she was going to be a 'woe-is-me' kind of character, but the more I read, the more it resonated to me that she was human. She took the easy route, the safe route in the beginning, and discovered slowly what she needed to do to be true to herself and I LOVED that. Sometimes you don't need characters to be taking the hard, exciting path to create a good story. 
I loved the twist at the end

that it wasn't a ghost or a spirit, it was a different play on the paranormal that I've not seen before and I thought it very clever.

It definitely helped with the gothic vibes of the house, which I equally loved. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism and Gaslighting

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

wintertree's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Gaslighting

Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury