Reviews tagging 'Grief'

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

24 reviews

immi_rae's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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

5.0

My fourth read of Kevin is on audio, just as good. Beautifully read, the story will always haunt me. I’ll probably keep re-reading it forver. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Gun violence, and Misogyny

Minor: Classism

hellokatya's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense 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

3.0

my first introduction to this story was through the film. somehow, i had come across it in relation to ezra miller - more true to character than we’d originally thought! - and was immediately interested. unfortunate to report, i was not a fan. however, upon finding out this was a novel first, through a sale at a book store, i was rekindled in my interest: hoping it would deliver better. 

the movie took on the same layout as the book where it is going between two timelines, i thought it ruined the potential that the story could’ve had, and i felt a bit similarly reading it. it is revealed in the blurb on the back of the book that kevin is a school shooter and murdered people, leaving his mother to deal with the fallout, but throughout the book it is hinted at, not fully acknowledged or confirmed until the very end where she, in great detail, describes her assumptions of how thursday went down. 

when i first began reading this, i was - and still am - in the throes of a reading slump. this was one i really looked forward to and counted on to bring me out of it; it did in smaller ways than anticipated. 

1. i absolutely loved the way the author writes. it is so eloquent and well spoken, sounds extremely educated, but it came to feel condescending in the end - and maybe that was purposeful but i just could not wait for it to be over with. this book did take me a bit to finish (just over two weeks) and i was dragging my way through it. in some other reviews i’ve read on storygraph, people were also taken aback by this. no real person talks like that. nonetheless, the writing intrigued me and i wanted so badly to finish it. it was just a bit of a drag and felt pretentious at times
2. the “letters” do not feel like letters to someone at all. they’re more diary entries, or reliving memories. they are not cohesive with the way the book is formatted and it was bothersome for me. though, one of my main points with perks of being a wallflower, was that the letters felt too impersonal and left far too much out for me to really be unconditionally in the story.
3. towards the end, i was contemplating whether i think eva is an unreliable narrator and if her accounts of kevin’s behavior and nature are to be trusted, or if they’re tinged red with fury and resentment. are children truly born evil? was he toying with her for so long from such a young age or was he really a lost boy trying to get through to his mother? 
   1. it almost made me begin to empathize with him and i loathed it

overall, i do not think i would recommend this book, as it is far too rich and i began skimming ~70% way through just to have it over with.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Child death, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Blood

Minor: Classism

jackbifrost's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual assault

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gun violence, and Physical abuse

christrep1dation's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Really intense, dark, horrifying read. 
I loved the writing so much and did not have as much trouble reading it as I thought I would according to reviews I read. Shriver’s turn of phrase is amazing and had me read through most of this 400+ page endeavor in an 8-ish-hour sitting. 

I don’t know how to express my feelings and thoughts in a condensed way—and there is so much to say—so I will just say it really stuck with me and I hugged my little brother for a long time when I finished. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Pregnancy

quinn24's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-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

4.0

Lionel Shriver can write so well I just wish her bigoted beliefs weren’t consistently clawing their way onto the page completely unnecessarily.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Alcohol

Minor: Bullying, Eating disorder, Genocide, Vomit, and Classism

thewhaanga's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful reflective

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Grief, and Mass/school shootings

A great read that questions a parents love for their offspring.

heather34's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Murder

annahollamby's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense 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

3.0

thought-provoking, disturbing, and ultimately, i fear, unforgettable. the detailed writing really adds to the realism of the story. eva, our narrator, is unlikeable but certainly enthralling. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Violence, Excrement, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Gaslighting

aliengirlreads's review against another edition

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Pregnancy

nialystic's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense

• 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

5.0

I really loved this book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mass/school shootings, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Gore, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Violence, Excrement, Grief, Murder, and Sexual harassment