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bookishrona's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
carojust's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think there's only so many storylines about extremely beautiful, self-destructive blond waifs that I can take. If "The Guest" by Emma Cline and "My Year of Rest and Relaxation" by Ottessa Moshfegh are your faves, you'll absolutely love "Fruit of the Dead" -- it's formulaic and frenzied, the same drug haze and unconsenting / triggering scenes, the body odor and broken faces combined with "but she's still so pretty, prettier in fact," the trail of gross men who erode innocence, etc. A yacht girl, sugar daddy tale of caution. What anchors this book's plot, and differentiates it from the aforementioned titles, is the deep dive into a mother's complicated relationship with her daughter, and the desperation and sacrifice that come with that version of love. That perspective resonated with me, and I think helped this plot move along. The end is hurried and attempts to paint the mother as a hero, but falls flat for me, and misses an opportunity to build further on the tragedy.
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
e11en's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Drug use, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Pedophilia and Blood
aseel_reads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
sakeriver's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Self harm
Moderate: Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
kds247's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Death
megnut's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
The story was well done... but I don't feel comfortable recommending it.
Cory's story made me heart hurt so much.
Graphic: Addiction and Drug use
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Death, Sexism, and Sexual content
maddiejane18's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
btaylorb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The complicated mother-daughter dynamic goes hard. The shifting POVs of first-person past tense for Emer (i.e., Demeter) and a third-person present tense for Cory, (Persephone) is jarring at first but also is really successful at illuminating the differing levels of vocal power versus embodied presence in their narratives. Emer uses her own voice to narrate her story but she's reflecting on her actions from after the fact with an oftentimes detached outlook. Meanwhile Cory is denied her own voice for her own story, with a narration style that almost seems to float above her like an astral projection observing the actions of its living body, and yet her sensory experiences are immediate, in the moment and intense.
Poetic, lush, but also gritty and gray. Check your content warnings, but also: The potentially triggering scenes are handled with care and skillful language. Because we know the story, we know what to expect to a certain degree, and the difficult to read parts are not there for fun, or for edginess. This version of the Persephone story highlights some of its darkest parts.
Graphic: Drug abuse and Drug use
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
gondorgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Alcohol
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism