Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Normal People by Sally Rooney

211 reviews

sahla's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Gaslighting

dazzlingreader_'s review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

3.75

This book is good, but it didn't talk to me as much as i thought it would. In my mind the characters are well written but they are and feel so real you might think of bad of them just from their decisions.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, and Grief

Minor: Classism

mockingjayx16's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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

0.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Dysphoria

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, and Classism

iamaprettyflower's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

3.75

I wish the characters would just talk to each other, because it constantly feels like they're purposely not understanding one another. It made me want to reach into the book and shake them for being so self-centred and emotionally blind. 

Also, Sally Rooney not using speech marks was an artistic choice that took a while to get used to?

Overall, I really wanted this book to be amazing as I've heard so many good things, but it just didn't hit the spot. I wanted to see the characters emotional intelligence grow, but it never happened. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism

xveronica_fx's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

pau0704's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

Really liked this book. It's very easy to read and very easy to follow the story. Characters are complex and really well developed. I really don't have much to say about this book except that I liked it a lot and the ending was not what I was expecting so I really liked that, always love when a book surprises me in a good way. 
Loved the writing style of the author. Now I get why this book is this famous. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Bullying, Mental illness, Blood, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Injury/Injury detail

bookishbrenbren's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad fast-paced

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

4.0

This review is going to sound silly but here goes

I don't think I've read such a captivating book in a long while. I was completely immersed in the inner workings of this tiny little polarized world. It was engrossing, I couldn't put it down and when I did, I kept thinking about it. I feel invested in these characters and I think the author did an incredible job of bringing them to life and capturing what life is like when you're a teen/new adult. Especially the internal life we live inside our own heads. 

on the other hand I fully agree with almost all criticisms of it that I've read 😂 the book is pretentious bordering on delivering a campy teenage movie (he's 17, a soccer star but he's top of his class but he's incredibly shy but he also recommends The Communist Manifesto to peers) and the not-like-other-girls girl even gets a makeover but not before she's read Swann's Way by herself at lunch. 👀 ok. Then also the treatment of disordered eating, classism, abuse and masochism and some light racism-makes-the-bad-guy-bad could also have been better handled. and honestly like on a very literal level, I feel silly caring who Connell Waldron asks to high school prom. But isn't it a sign of a strong writer that she can make me care about something like that? Ugh idk I am so torn. The characters are slightly cliche but nobody can write internal thought like this. I just don't know, send help 🏳️ I can't deny the pull that this book had on me and the fact that it made me feel things. I am a Marianne loyalist and I feel like I genuinely know her. She came to life for me. 
But idk I guess I also expected something more serious (but less self-serious?) than this 🫣 for all the hype and marketing it got 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

harper11's review against another edition

• 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

1.0

One star because the only thing that pushed me through the trenches of this book was Rooney’s writing style. This book was completely and absolutely not for me, which is a shame considering the hype. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide

Minor: Racism

aroush's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective slow-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Classism

alice_ca_glisse's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Classism