Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

37 reviews

crocodilerocklobster's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Death, Violence, Gore, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder

Moderate: Mental illness, Cursing, Gun violence, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Drug use, and Pregnancy

Minor: Cancer, Racism, Sexual content, Abortion, and Miscarriage

celina246's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

This book was intense. It felt a bit like the shock value outweighed the actual plot, so that the mystery was just background to the gore, violence and tragedy. I can’t see myself wanting to read this again. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, Gore, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Death

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Classism, Pregnancy, and Grief

brandie_abbie19's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Gun violence, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Grief, Pedophilia, Toxic friendship, Violence, Abandonment, Child death, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Cancer and Colonisation

jetix's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Murder, Animal death, Drug use, and Child death

Minor: Alcohol and Grief

kat_rowlen's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

This book is short to begin with but could have been at least 150 pages shorter. Nothing happened for the first 95% of the book (I track my pages so that’s accurate) the ending was twisty and surprising, but wasn’t really worth enduring the first half of the book. I was comparing this book to Sharp Objects and it doesn’t hold a candle to it! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Rape, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Torture, Pregnancy, Blood, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, and Animal death

Moderate: Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Incest, Child death, and Drug use

leyendoentremontanias's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Drug abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Violence, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Death, Blood, Animal cruelty, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Child death, and Animal death

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Grief, Child abuse, Child death, Drug use, Excrement, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Hate crime, and Injury/Injury detail

olxvgxes's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, Pedophilia, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal death and Animal cruelty

Minor: Incest and Vomit

marybsimp's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Murder, Suicide, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Blood, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Grief, Gun violence, Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Child death, Drug abuse, and Gore

kaia24's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Grief, Toxic relationship, Child death, Classism, Murder, and Death of parent

Moderate: Blood, Body shaming, Drug use, Animal death, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Bullying, Addiction, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit and Mental illness

tangledinblue's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

I love how this book is written in a way that forces you to untangle the knots and find the truth as the protagonist does the same.  Tackles the fragility of memory, the satanic panic, the 80s true crime community, and what happens when a tragedy becomes a spectacle. I loved that the narrator was unreliable, both intentionally and unintentionally, and how Flynn wove the story to drop pieces of the puzzle in at opportune moments, leaving the reader juuuust one step away from a realization at all times.  I also am a huge fan of Flynn’s female protags- they’re angry, depressed, bitter, and morally grey  in a way that doesn’t make them unlikeable, because they resonate with all women. Their rage may not be righteous but it is not unjustified. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Classism, Gore, Drug use, Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood

Moderate: Pedophilia