Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez

9 reviews

mzgeee53's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

3.0

Márquez's Love in the Time of Cholera is a sweeping tale of love, obsession, and the passage of time. The story follows Florentino Ariza's lifelong love for Fermina Daza, a love that begins in youth and endures through decades of separation and societal pressures. As the novel unfolds, we witness the intricate tapestry of their lives, set against the backdrop of a cholera epidemic and the evolving landscape of Colombia.

Márquez's lyrical prose and philosophical musings are undoubtedly captivating. His ability to weave intricate narratives and explore profound themes is on full display in Love in the Time of Cholera. However, the novel's main characters, Fermina Daza and Florentino Ariza, proved to be challenging to connect with. Daza's racist views and Ariza's pedophilia and womanizing tendencies made it difficult to fully invest in their relationship and root for their happiness.

While the novel's exploration of love, passion, and the human condition is thought-provoking, the characters' flaws ultimately hindered my enjoyment of the story. As a result, I found One Hundred Years of Solitude to be a more satisfying and compelling work.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic

1orne's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

lindseyhall44's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

Another stunning novel by one of the most talented authors to ever existed. Within the social commentary, magical realism, and class dynamics, there is also an incredible amount of heart. I would highly, highly recommend.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Infidelity, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Outing, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

annatan's review against another edition

hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Racism, Sexism, and Stalking

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Grief, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Forced institutionalization and Death of parent

gabriella_'s review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

Was anyone going to tell me there’s a

pedophilic relationship

in this or was I supposed to find out on my own? Genuinely left a disgusting taste in my mouth reading this. 

And why was there so much casual racism and bigoted language throughout the book? It was physically painful in a book that otherwise had a gripping prose (but was problematic, I smell misogyny). 

I don’t want to rate this because I feel so conflicted. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

mgraceoliver's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, and Grief

Minor: Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Infidelity, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and War

cait's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Incest, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Xenophobia, Dementia, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Classism

sommer22's review against another edition

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

2.5

CW: p*dophilia

The writing in this book is beautiful, although at some points the narrative felt like it was dragging and others I couldn't put it down. The biggest problem I have with this book is its main character. Florentino Ariza is so consumed by his love for Fermina Daza that he ignores the potential consequences of his actions and does not hold himself accountable for them once they come to fruition.

In his bid to rise to the top of the Riverboat Company as a way to gain enough status as Fermina, he causes deforestation along the Magdalena River, destroying the ecosystems and livelihoods of the people within and surrounding it. He also grooms and takes advantage of a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD CHILD, and barely bats an eye when she commits suicide in the aftermath of their relationship.

He takes advantage of so many people and things and thinks of women, including Fermina, in such a misogynistic, flippant, and exploitative way that was really frustrating to read. I was not rooting for him by the end, and as Fermina was my favorite character,

I hate how they ended up together after he essentially stalked her for his entire life.

This book is very heavy-handed with symbolism (cholera, the river, taking journeys) and has an interesting narrative structure. It's portioned into larger sections, rather than individual chapters, which in my opinion was very immersive, and it made me feel the time passing as each character went through their lives. The majority of this story is also told in a flashback with past-within-the-past references, which adds to its narrative uniqueness. As I said, Márquez uses very beautiful, immersive imagery that makes each setting distinctive, but my dislike of the main character is my biggest reason for the low rating.

This book aims to represent love in many different forms, but the incarnation that is meant to be its centerpiece is instead very toxic, unsettling, and hard to ignore.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Sexual content

Moderate: Animal death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Stalking, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape and Suicide

My biggest problem with Florentino Ariza is that he is a p*dophile. He has a sexual relationship with a fourteen-year-old girl who is related to him when he is a 70-year-old man. It made me physically ill to read. He realizes the error of his ways, but not in a way that inspires forgiveness.

Sex is also a major theme in this book, and I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who has a problem with semi-graphic sexuality.

_fallinglight_'s review against another edition

slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Murder

Moderate: Death, Dementia, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape and Suicide