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Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'
Into the Bright Open: A Secret Garden Remix by Cherie Dimaline
13 reviews
tlaynejones's review
dark
emotional
slow-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Racism, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Classism
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit
citrus_seasalt's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
At some times endearing, at others on-the-nose. The cast of characters was charming, but I can see the story working better if Mary was just a year younger. If you're a fan of the author, I recommend you still check it out, but I can't say it'll be the strongest work in her catalog. I also have not read the original Secret Garden story, some of the negative reviews came from aging Mary up but I cannot comment on (most of) it for that reason.
I did, however, really like the pacing of the queer romance. I was appropriately happy when Mary realized her feelings for Sophie, the two's dynamic was genuinely cute, and I liked that unlike a few YA novels, this wasn't a first love scenario. Mary's sapphic identity was revealed earlier on in the story, she originally spent the time thinking about a former crush-slash-almost-friend(which doesn't go anywhere, lol, it's just nice to see childhood crushes represented like that), but later on she develops an actual love for Sophie.
Easily, the Indigenous characters were the most fleshed-out besides Mary. (Which isn't surprising, considering the author.) Flora was a fun addition of much-needed snark when Rebecca was introduced.
Some of the story notes felt repetitive, though, like the titular "bright open" motif. I get that it was used only when needed, but my annoyance came from the tell-not-show writing. Some of the themes of community, loneliness, and different kinds of love could've been gathered from analysis and not spelling them out imo.
Works very well as a children's/middle-grade book, though, if you remove the occasional cursing.
I did, however, really like the pacing of the queer romance. I was appropriately happy when Mary realized her feelings for Sophie, the two's dynamic was genuinely cute, and I liked that unlike a few YA novels, this wasn't a first love scenario. Mary's sapphic identity was revealed earlier on in the story, she originally spent the time thinking about a former crush-slash-almost-friend(which doesn't go anywhere, lol, it's just nice to see childhood crushes represented like that), but later on she develops an actual love for Sophie.
Easily, the Indigenous characters were the most fleshed-out besides Mary. (Which isn't surprising, considering the author.) Flora was a fun addition of much-needed snark when Rebecca was introduced.
Some of the story notes felt repetitive, though, like the titular "bright open" motif. I get that it was used only when needed, but my annoyance came from the tell-not-show writing. Some of the themes of community, loneliness, and different kinds of love could've been gathered from analysis and not spelling them out imo.
Works very well as a children's/middle-grade book, though, if you remove the occasional cursing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, and Racism
Minor: Grief, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia
fanboyriot's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
sad
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? No
4.0
Read For:
Retellings
Hurt/Comfort
Historical Fiction
Angst with a Happy Ending
The Secret Garden but Make it Sapphic
Normally, I’m not a big classic reader and only a handful I’ve managed to like but this was such a lovely rewrite of the classic: The Secret Garden with a queer theme woven into it.
"But there was one person who could speak up, that would make them listen, and it was her." (Page 157, Chapter 18)
There was an overall magical vibe to the settings in general and while there are some depressing and darker moments in this book it really had such a nice charm to it. The writing style was really nice to read, the characters (other than a few) were all quite lovely, and the ending was really satisfying to read. Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
(Third Person POV)
Spice: None
Rep: Lesbian MC, BIPOC LI/SCs
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Classism