Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

The Bone People by Keri Hulme

5 reviews

marioncromb's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

4.25

Wonderful to see an aroace (and nonbinary/gnc) main character in a Booker Prize winning book from the 80s! Honestly building a medieval stone tower by the sea to live and draw in with a well stocked booze cellar is goals tbh.
I really enjoyed spending time in the NZ setting with these characters and the ways they clashed and grew together. The book sets up several mysteries at the start that are fun to unravel and come back to at the end, although maybe some moral unease on my end at the enjoyment in unraveling one of those mysteries being '

what exactly was the traumatic abuse that happened to this child'.

The book is very long though and in the second half I was definitely flagging in places where it felt morr indulgent or repetitive. Its a little deus ex machina at the end as well, i wasn't totally convinced things could be fixed that easily, realistically. Although arguably it is about the hope of things being better, this time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, and Grief

Minor: Cannibalism, Addiction, Homophobia, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Drug use, Excrement, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, and Acephobia/Arophobia

memezaharamole's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Amazing - challenging is probably an apt description of the book, not due to the pace, but due to themes. I had been told it was dark, so had put off reading it in a poor headspace and picked it up while feeling a little better. Was still a tough read, but found it healing, looking at the depths of humanity, the quirks that come from trauma. And how relationships are so difficult but at the core of what makes us human.

As a New Zealander living overseas, the use of Te Reo Maori and references to the homeland really helped ground me in this book. One of the best I have ever read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Cancer, Medical content, Addiction, and Pedophilia

jenna_smuszkiewicz's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

1.5

I decided to pick up this book because I heard the main character, Kerewin, was aroace and I wanted to read more of that rep. It is very clear that Kerewin is aroace which is good. This book was just not for me. I wanted to learn more about the child's past, go in the Kerewin's path and exactly what was going on with her, and dive into the mental health of the child's adoptive father, Joe. We go a little into all of those but not enough to make the picture clear to me. 

After the event

(Joe beating up Simon so hard he goes into a coma)

, I don't understand what is going on with the characters there, especially Joe and Kerewin. And I don't know how we get from what's happened in this book to the ending.

I don't understand how they can have a happy ending without reconciling more of their past and mental health struggles and child abuse that was permitted to happen

Maybe this book is meant for other people. I get that. If you do decide to read, please read the content warnings. There is a lot in this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Physical abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Violence, Child abuse, Drug use, Medical trauma, and Grief

Moderate: Chronic illness and Abandonment

Minor: Pedophilia and Adult/minor relationship

meghar's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Blood, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Violence, Racism, Physical abuse, Cancer, Child abuse, and Medical trauma

mscalls's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Racism