Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman

4 reviews

plume_de_renarde's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, Child death, and Animal death

Moderate: Religious bigotry and Misogyny

Minor: Abandonment, Racism, Gaslighting, and Toxic relationship

jadziaaudrey's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, War, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Injury/injury detail, Torture, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Murder and Grief

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Toxic relationship

bexi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

I thought the first part was confusing and a little boring, but it picks up later on. I'd recommend sticking with it until at least part two if you're feeling the same way, because it does get better.

I often struggled to connect with the characters and found many of them unlikable, including the main character Lyra (she grew on me, but I'm still not sure I like her).

I believe this book is supposed to be a critique of Christianity, or maybe more specifically the Church. I occasionally felt I lacked the knowledge to understand all of the critiques because although my parents were raised Baptist & Catholic respectively, I was not raised as such. For context, I'm not a religious person and identify as agnostic. I found the commentary interesting, but if you're a Christian you might get upset by some of it.

This book is marked as middle grade and young adult. I'd say it leans more YA. I found this incredibly dark for MG and would not recommend it to the average middle grader. If said child is emotionally & intellectually mature for their age then okay, but otherwise I'd say it's best for ages 14+. I don't have kids, so take that with a grain of salt. I personally would not have been mature/smart enough to get much out this book had I read it in middle school. 😅

I thought the story was unique and liked it overall, but I'm not sure if I'll pick up the next book in the series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Injury/injury detail, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Murder, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Racism, Alcohol, Classism, Gaslighting, Excrement, and Infidelity

karoliiine's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Confinement

Moderate: Classism, Abandonment, Bullying, and Sexism

Minor: Alcohol