Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka

10 reviews

vaykay's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

I read this because I watched @newlynova's YouTube reading vlog "until she read a five star book," and wow... she was right. I sobbed, and I slobbered into my pajama shirt.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Police brutality, and Car accident

zreadz's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

Kukafka’s language and prose create a story that’s hard to look away from. What begins as a story about familial abuse and abandonment twists itself into a darker story. This book deals with the philosophical question: Are we inherently good or evil…or is it our choices that make us that way? In addition, it uses the idea of nature vs. nurture to make the reader question your own life and the many different versions of your life that could’ve been. This book leaves you with a feeling that’s hard to describe. These are just a few themes conveyed by this story and there are many more, but I’m glad I picked it up on a blind read.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Abandonment

a_w_m's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Brilliant! Loved this author’s writing style.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Murder, and Abandonment

thecheeseowl's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

This book held up a mirror to reality. If Ancel Packer was on 2020 I don't think anyone would bat an eye. The cruelty of the world is on full display.

This story similar to Ancel himself was truly fascinated with morality and what serial kills say about humanity as a whole along with what does love truly look like and how can something like love be corrupted. 

There have been people who argue that the book is too sympathetic to Ancel. I disagree throughout the whole book until I got to the end where now I understand what they were saying. But I would still argue that the book isn't arguing that Ancel is a good person it is just arguing that he is a person. That there was something there that could have been but wasn't because of what he did. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Murder, and Abandonment

Moderate: Animal death and Racism

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, and Misogyny

roseteareads's review

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I like the utilization of the multiple POV though some dragged more than others. Lavender's story was the most interesting to me. I enjoyed Saffy as a character but at times her story felt more like a standard police procedural wrapped in literary style writing. Hazel's sections were the slowest for me.

What I do like is that it captured the essence of empty narcissim that drives these serial killers. These are sociopaths with a fragile ego and overblown sense of self. They aren't exceptionally intelligent or charming, and neither was the killer at the center of this novel even though from his POV you could tell that he thought he was. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Murder

haileyeh's review

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Car accident, and Abandonment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Gore, Xenophobia, Vomit, Islamophobia, Death of parent, and Alcohol

laurataylor's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

desiderium_incarnate's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.75

There are millions of men out there who want to hurt women - people seem to think that Ansel Packer is extraordinary, because he actually did. 

This book was amazing! Yes it's incredibly dark and it hurts but it is so skillfully written and immersive and makes so much sense, I am pretty much in awe. The cover also makes so much sense when you read it and that's really cool. I didn't give it 5 stars because of a principle I have, if animals get unnecessarily hurt or die in a story, it isn't 5 stars,but yeah otherwise I fully recommend it. It really gives you a new perspective on the obsession people have with murderers or serial killers specifically - is the murderer really the most important thing about that? Is it most interesting, what made them like this? How their psyche works? What would be if they wouldn't have made those decisions? How they impacted the people around them and vice versa? 
The book is not pro death penalty or police it shows flaws in the system, it also isn't against reporting on serial killers, it is just in some ways a comfort, hope, warning and another perspective from death row as well as from impacted outsiders left behind and I think that is all it should be. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

kananineko's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I think this book was very well written and very well done, if a little shallow. Every perspective felt necessary and added to the story, and I really enjoyed the focus on victims and women in the story of a male serial killer, but... I feel like it could've dived deeper into the themes, and honestly, not much happened. Dare I say it was a little boring and forgettable... Keep in mind that crime/thriller isn’t my usual genre (I don’t enjoy these types of books as much as other people do). However, it was still an important book. I did shed a tear in the last chapter, which is rare. I also wish Lavendar had more chapters. Overall, I'd consider it a good book, though. The writing was phenomenal as well. I'm glad this book was written but it wasn't anything out of this world. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Abandonment

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

nicolesorial's review against another edition

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Cancer and Rape