Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

14 reviews

thatjds's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

laurenbb23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, and Sexual assault

ruffian23's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship

c_dmckinney's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

3.5

This book is a prequel to Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. It is an exploration and fleshing out of Rochester's first wife before he changed her name and condemned her to the attic for "madness". 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Abandonment, Grief, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Racism, Misogyny, Mental illness, Infidelity, Confinement, Colonisation, Chronic illness, Racial slurs, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Domestic abuse, and Classism

asmallgremlin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

5.0

Well…I hate Rochester now

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Racism, Racial slurs, Slavery, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, and Colonisation

edesia_guest's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

It gives Antoinette, or bertha in jane eyre, a story. it gives information on the ignored character and does it in a beautiful and melancholic way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Xenophobia, Racism, Abandonment, Colonisation, Deadnaming, Misogyny, Violence, and Racial slurs

bethsicle's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Death of parent

Minor: Blood and Child death

ninaevan's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

Beautiful writing, dark and moody but also vivid with technicolor detail. It’s an incredible homage to a literary figure who so deeply deserved it. This edition also was very helpful for it it’s contextual insights- I learned a lot as I absorbed the story. 

My scoring: 
5.00 | = everyone in the world must read this book 
4.75 | = between 4.5 and 5
4.50 | = dessert island book
4.25 | = between 4 and 4.5
4.00 | = great, solid, recommendable book
3.75 | = almost a 4, but not quite 
3.50 | = not a 4, but I had a good time
3.25 | = rough patches, but not bad
3.00 | = meh, read-able but nothing to write home about
2.75 | = between a 2.5 and 3
2.50 | = there’s something I liked here but it wasn’t enough to be good 
2.25 | = between a 2 and 2.5
2.00 | = not good and there was nothing I liked 
1.00 | = bad

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Confinement, and Emotional abuse

im_a_toothfairy's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Definitely read this if you have read Jane Eyre.  I was not a big fan of Jane Eyre but I did enjoy this book and it also helped me understand Jane Eyre. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Mental illness and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Slavery and Misogyny

yarnofariadne's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-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

3.25

Spoiler

I have complicated feelings about this book. Knowing it's written by a white woman who was born in the West Indies makes all the interactions between Antoinette and the Black people around her really, really uncomfortable; while on the one hand I can see why narratively Antoinette must be out of place even at home, it doesn't feel like the text recognises that presenting Antoinette as the pure, set-upon heroine who was unfairly persecuted by evil, nasty Black people is extremely gross. And knowing that Antoinette's position is what Rhys's was makes this feel like Rhys is just...wildly racist. I'm not necessarily opposed to Antoinette being depicted as a ~Problematic Person~ but I don't think the text thinks it's doing that; I think the intention was to present Antoinette as a persecuted innocent, and that's not the reality of the Antoinette on the page. I am glad to report that Rochester is still the worst!! And god, some of the imagery in this book is really heart-wrenchingly stunning. The use of the haunted text, the callbacks, the symbolism is all absolutely stunning and I am in love with it. But man, it felt bad to read sometimes.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse