Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Animal by Lisa Taddeo

91 reviews

jmcampbell57's review against another edition

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

3.75


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laynemandros's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-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

2.75


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lilysaddler's review against another edition

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

4.0


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smlima1992's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0


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lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense 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

4.0

I have had this book on my radar for about a year, before I finally picked it up. I did listen to this as an audiobook, which I would highly recommend to anyone interested in this story. The audiobook is narrated by Emma Roberts and she is EXACTLY who I picture the main character to be. 
"Animal" follows a young woman named Joan. Joan lost her parents when she was very young, and consequently grew up too fast and without too much adult intervention. She learned from a very young age that she could get men to do things for her and pay her way through life. One of these men ended up falling completely in love with her and is so distraught when she breaks it off, that he kills himself in front of her and her new date. Joan moves across the country to LA to start new with no money and no prospects, but she tries to continue her ways to get by, by using men. 
Joan is definitely the epitome of a morally gray character. She clearly uses men to get what she wants, but she often targets men who "deserve" it in her eyes. She grew up without parents and had to learn how to get by on her own, and when she discovered that men would do anything for her, it was too intoxicating of a trick to let go of. Yes, most of the men were married and well off, but it takes two to cheat, so is Joan the sole villain? She is manipulative, often cruel, and seems to know what she is doing is wrong, but she does not know how to do anything else. You kind of root for her, but also hope she can turn things around. She is a highly unlikeable character, but you still want her to succeed. It is Joan's complexities that make her so captivating to read about. 
I was impressed by this book, and I will definitely keep Lisa Taddeo on my radar in the future. 

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bxcvi's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5


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emmague89's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.0


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rebeccajost's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

2.5


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lexipassno's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

3.0


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chyneyee's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Aside from the trauma and violence encountered by Joan, this book is mostly about sex, men's desires, degrading men in every possible way, and belittling other women, especially her lovers' partners.

The story wasn't that terrible, and I guess I have a rough idea of what kind of message the author wishes to convey through this book. At least it captured my interest to read until the last page of the book. The particular thing I couldn't accept was the confusing writing style. I'm all right that none of the characters is worth being liked. I felt the execution is a failure that steers the readers away from the story.

Book Review: Animal by Lisa Taddeo.

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