Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Into the Water by Paula Hawkins

16 reviews

dblue236's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

The more of this author's books I read, the more I think The Girl on the Train might have been a one and done for me. I did finish this one, and I can't say I HATED it, but I was also pretty unenthused by it. I didn't really connect with any of the characters, and the story felt fairly disjointed. The ending was solid, but overall I wasn't crazy about this by any means. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

ladycranstonkc's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

Graphic: Bullying, Rape, Sexual assault, and Murder

annie_g_scott's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Rape, and Murder

cassiereadsbooks_'s review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol

greatexpectations77's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.75

I enjoyed this book, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the physical version. There were a lottttt of characters, and it took me a long time to parse everyone apart. I think if I had a better idea of who everyone was, I could have started storing away little details about them to feel more involved in their lives faster. I thought it was written really well though, and I felt like everyone's story had a satisfying conclusion. Love a little witchy gal, too.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicide, Grief, and Abandonment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Blood, and Kidnapping

mr_cain's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.75

I only docked .25 of a star because the pacing was so slow in the exposition. I understand she's establishing a whole host of characters and I do appreciate it, but it's a book you have to power through the first part of. 

This book genuinely kept me guessing. I did suspect the real culprit several times, but I waffled often. Hawkins does a great job supplying motive and details for each of the suspects without it feeling like a painfully deliberate red herring. 

Hawkins also makes the characters each their own and her style is distinct for each chapter in a different POV (i.e. Helen, Jules, + Sean's chapters all feel genuine vs. the same style with different names as many POV switching books seem to do). She provides a cast of characters who are complex and feel so real. Not every character is deeply complicated but they all have their own established psyches which I loved. 

I can easily call myself a Paula Hawkins fan after this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Blood

Minor: Chronic illness, Eating disorder, and Vomit

exrthalex's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This book closely followed several seemingly intertwined unfortunate “drownings.” Throughout the most recent tragedies, the characters are forced to confront past trauma and mistakes, so they can understand, learn, and heal. I expected the plot to have a closer connection to witchcraft/the previous “witches” drowned, but it instead felt like a side note. I enjoyed the plot overall, but would have loved if this element was explored more. While the use of multiple character perspectives can be confusing at times, it ultimately complements the story by providing an omniscient POV. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Murder

millenialbookworm's review against another edition

emotional tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Murder

mabelstulips's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Death of parent

bluejeepbaby's review against another edition

mysterious medium-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Fatphobia, Rape, Suicide, and Death of parent

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, and Lesbophobia