Reviews tagging 'Death'

Animal by Lisa Taddeo

118 reviews

hannasifaka's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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clementine_lips's review against another edition

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

3.75

It took me a while to get into the book because I wasn’t reading it at the right time for me. I’d read The Guest by Emma Cline and Bunny by Mona Awad right before this one and all 3 have the same type of character: a young(ish) woman who is or was abused and becomes a rag doll for men as a consequence. They don’t seem to have desires other than survival until the book is relatively advanced, which is when I started enjoying all 3. I thought it was written very well, with a lot of gut punching observations. Would recommend if you’re in the right state of mind - in a positive place in life. 
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kaylac4's review against another edition

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dark fast-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

3.5

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rebeccakoury's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-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

2.5

This rating doesn't necessarily stem from the quality of the writing, but of my experience reading it. It was often hard to be slipping in and out of memories so often which connected but then also felt confusing. I understand what the author was trying to do but the book often felt so fragmented that I would question the intent of parts. I am not one to shy away from graphic scenes or writing, but at times certain scenes felt graphic just to be so. It's unfortunate because I was really excited for this book but it just didn't work for me.
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hannaheperry's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

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citybound13's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This was the hardest to read book I’ve ever encountered and I’ve read some very gruesome and scary books. Be kind to yourself while reading this.
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ktwoolen's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I loved this story but as a mother I was so triggered and disturbed by so much of the dialog and imagery. Truly a heartbreaking read for me. A lot of reviews said it’s about how being in your 30s can make you want to kill- but to me it was about how parent trauma and send you on a spiral of self degradation, and how being treated like you’re disposable by everyone that’s ever come into your life can make you want to kill. 
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judyhagan's review against another edition

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

5.0

Evocative, poignant, gut-punchingly heart-rending, harrowing: I was rapt until the end. I don't have words for how this gripped me and tore me apart. 
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laedyred's review against another edition

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

5.0

This is one of the best novels on the effects of generational and sexual trauma I have ever read. This is not a story of redemption or hopeful new beginnings. Joan is an utterly real person, and we see the contradiction and pain living inside her without the fluff of a character built to be a turned-hero. The first half of the book is a stream of consciousness and can drag at times. However, a piece like this is not to entertain. Its goal is not to inform or enlighten. This is an expression of pain taken at face value. Those who have not experienced what Joan describes cannot fully grasp what this text does. Although feminism is a huge motif, the modern interpretation of the "girl boss" is nowhere seen. Joan's rage mimics the violence that builds through oppression and abuse, steering her to act out. She is not a hero, but she is also not an anti-hero. She is a person, she is a woman, she is an expression of those who know.
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clairebartholomew549's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

3.0

I don't know how to feel about this book. I resonated with a lot of its themes and assertions about the ceaseless violence men commit against women and the ways our entire inner lives are shaped by the men we're exposed to, and I appreciated Joan's unabashed commitment to voicing the darkest parts of herself. But I found the plot kind of tiring, definitely disturbing, and vaguely performative; it felt a little redundant of other books I've read like it before, like The Girls and Bright Young Women, and it was not an enjoyable read.
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