Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Ghost Woods by C.J. Cooke

8 reviews

cnannery19's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

chrisscorkscrew's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

cosypuck's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious

4.5

Great plot and great Gothic vibes but I struggled to differentiate between the dual timelines because the narrators' voices were so similar.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Rape, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Car accident, Abortion, and Lesbophobia

camelia_martin's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Finished this book in around 8 hours! It was gripping for a while, then it started becoming a bit boring like the plot building was taking too long.. then suddenly - bang, a revelation to keep you hooked

I really thought Mabel was a ghost until finding out she’s alive in the shed!

Those little revelations really kept the intrigue, and the way the seemingly unlinked characters and their lives became interlinked was incredible. 
I had a gut feeling about how Mabel was pregnant and despite turning out to be correct I was still shocked by the way it was revealed. 
I feel like Wulfie’s storyline was a bit rushed at the end - I really wanted to feel more for his character. The hints

like him slipping up and calling his “grandad” dad a few times

were great foreshadowing. 

I will say I didn’t find it scary, though I don’t find horror/thriller or gothic horror books to be scary anyway, but I did find myself reading faster and faster as I hit the last 100 pages. 

Mrs W’s situation was predictable

they mentioned the cordyceps taking over a host body so many times throughout the book, and her few sudden flips in behaviour couldn’t have been due to a personality disorder, so her being taken over by the curse woman was obvious

Overall though an enjoyable book that kept me wanting more! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Dementia, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

dungareece's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I can’t even begin to express how much I fell in love with the women in this book. Their stories, their strengths, their vulnerabilities. I am so not ready to leave their world behind. 

It is deliciously gothic and eerie with the suitably damp, dark and mushroom infested setting of a secluded Scottish mansion, Lichen Hall. Lichen Hall doubles as a mother and baby home for unwed mothers. The history of which I was only vaguely aware of prior to reading this book. 

I adore a book with multiple narrators, and CJ Cooke is so wonderful at braiding seemingly unrelated narratives together in the  most intricate ways. This book is the perfect love letter to women and being othered from society. Beautifully sad stories of motherhood and queerness are intertwined with a wonderful sprinkling of magic. A full on rollercoaster of emotions, I had moments of being in tears followed by moments of kicking my feet in joy. 

Ps I have never cried at an authors note before so that was new

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Dementia, Grief, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Animal death and Vomit

Minor: Homophobia

dogearedbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Rape, Sexism, Blood, Dementia, Grief, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Body horror and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Bullying and Car accident

tamara_joy's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Very creepy, very... fungal.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Child death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Abortion, Abandonment, and Classism

nicoles_reading_corner's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Physical abuse, Rape, and Dementia