Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Pisces by Melissa Broder

10 reviews

christine_s's review against another edition

challenging emotional 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

2.5

This was a uh unique concept. I did not like the characters. At all. Any of them. But it was an immersive read, that was quick. I think there was some character growth...but I did find it really hard to understand that main characters motives, but it is defintily a book that will product a visceral reaction in most people, I believe.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Stalking, and Toxic friendship

linda_ws's review

dark 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Mental illness, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Blood, Excrement, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Vomit, Grief, and Death of parent

applesodaperson's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

2.5

Overall, I did somewhat enjoy this book, but it is by no means a pinnacle of literature. It was entertaining on a basic level, but didn't have any more depth than that. 
This book definitely has one of the most dysfunctional and unhinged main characters I have ever read about. She is an absolute mess, and literally pees her pants in public at one point. But I do think she goes from being just dysfunctional to straight up harmful and evil and selfish at times. Like I am seriously the biggest Lucy hater. And I think it is a very fine line within this subgenre, but it really does matter, and makes the difference of whether the reader is going to root for her or not. And I did not root for her when she physically punched her ex unprompted, or literally gave her sister's dog so many tranquilizers that

it died,

and for entirely selfish reasons (which I totally called was going to happen). And yes she is relatable sometimes, but she is so terrible that I could not bring myself to root or care about her love life, or just life in general. 
I also think that the sex scenes in this book were written in such a cringy way, which were not sexy or enjoyable to listen to at all. 
I actually did like the magical realism elements with Theo the merman, and how that becomes a vessel for self discovery and character growth. 
But my biggest problem with this book was the age of the main character. I actually really enjoy middle-aged female protagonists, but I absolutely do not think that the author successfully pulled it off. Basically nothing about the main character feels believably 38 years old, besides her mentioning that she has some gray hair. This book is written for women readers in their 20s, and Lucy is written like a woman in her 20s. Another thing that heavily affected this was the audiobook narrator, which was Melissa Broder, the author. I know she is in her 40s, but her voice sounds like she is way younger than that. And it makes Lucy feels young. There is also a side character, who I think is supposed to be British, but holy cow Broder has the worst British accent I have ever heard in my life. 
Overall, this is a mildly entertaining book, but not a must read. 
Listened to on Libby.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content

whiddengem's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

2.25

Found out there's more than one way to interpret Pisces.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Animal death and Suicide attempt

Minor: Pregnancy and Toxic friendship

Interspecies sex happens.

bersblue's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

mayareads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

• 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

4.0

Can we ever escape our obsessions? How do you choose reality when fantasy is so much more appealing?

Lucy, the titular Pisces, does this thing where she projects narratives onto everyone else in her life. She constructs elaborate fantasies where she is the main character, and then inevitably is crushed by the shame and disappointment when reality does not follow the narrative she chose for it. She is a magnificent unreliable narrator.

The pisces is a book about that process: the way we write the story of other people and how they see us in our heads and then feel blindsided when those narratives are entirely fictional. How do we choose to accept the mundane when the fantasy promised something sublime?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, and Blood

ivyleiff's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• 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

4.25

that was so ??!???! but i also kind of loved it?? 🧜‍♂️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Violence, Excrement, and Vomit

lavenderpagess's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

nahochacon's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

Creo que the pisces es un libro que nos ilumina las adiciones más allá de las drogas y el alcohol. Creo que muestra la soledad y el abandono de buenas formas y la desesperación de tener a alguien a tu lado. Me gustó bastante porque si bien pensé que el final iba a ser trágico, quedo contenta con el rayo de esperanza. El libro no debe ser visto como una historia , sino como una realidad más común de lo que esperamos.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, and Grief

Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

hungeberg's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

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

1.0

This review is slightly graphic but won't be too spoilery. 

First of all  - i did debate giving this 0 or 0,5 stars. However i do find small things of marit in this book. Second of all I was recommended this which is why i choose to finish it even though i struggled with the getting through it. 

Let's start with the good; 
- It's a complicated story about love addiction with a magical realism twist which I in the big whole like. 
- Lucy as a narrator was decent. 

Things i disliked
- I'm not one for smutty/erotic books and especially not when the character participating in the sexual acts are not even enjoying it? Why would I want to read about bad hurtful sex in such detail? AND SO MANY TIMES?! And then when Lucy finally found a partner who she enjoyed to fuck then it was some weird very specific "kinky"  shit that not everyone would like (least of all me?!). 
- I am not a classics student or for that matter a literary one and therefore I don't really have any claim on knowing Sapho's poems that well. However I do as a queer woman find Sapho to be a queer icon/character who participates in romantic/sexual relationships with both genders but especially with women. And somehow the use of her as a character in this book to justify this heterosexual bullshit rubbed me the wrong way. 
- the treatment of other women in this book is horrendous. 

Things I hated
- Does such a thing as toxic heterosexuality exist? Because then this would be it? 
- Lucy seems to learn a few lessons by the end of a book. BUT NOT NEARLY ENOUGH??? At least it wasn't written out in a way that make it seem like she will become a better person ESPECIALLY to the other women in her life. 
- The treatment of the dog. Nough said. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Vomit, and Death of parent