Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur 허주은

31 reviews

krystalg's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Trafficking, Murder, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Classism, Confinement, and Death

Moderate: Grief, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, Sexism, and Suicidal thoughts

rieviolet's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

3.0

I really liked how the author rendered the setting on the page, from the natural descriptions of Jeju island to the depictions of buildings and even characters' clothes, it all felt really vivid and I could easily picture it in my mind. 

However, I wasn't so taken with the storyline, at times it dragged on and also certain aspects were a bit too much predictable (and I say this as someone who usually never sees what is coming in a mystery).
I also wasn't really drawn to the characters, I struggled to connect with them and I didn't find their emotional portrayal and development particularly incisive. 

All in all, it was an interesting reading and I really appreciated the historical setting, but in terms of the story itself it fell a bit flat for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Child death, Child abuse, Sexism, Vomit, Kidnapping, Abandonment, and Grief

Moderate: Murder, Trafficking, Suicide, Blood, Violence, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Torture, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcoholism

jessthanthree's review against another edition

adventurous 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, Sexism, and Death

Minor: Sexual assault

fugeww40's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This is a true thriller -- I wasn't able to predict the ending at all. Mostly, I think this is because the characters are so well written. They do not have that Sherlock syndrome where the detective just knows everything. They are all human and get distracted by red herrings and emotion. As a bonus, you learn a lot of history along the way. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

There are some light visual descriptions of murdered women.

moonytoast's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking and Death of parent

Moderate: Kidnapping, Death, and Grief

phua_jieying's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Murder, Trafficking, and Misogyny

lynneliu's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexism, Trafficking, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Misogyny

Moderate: Abandonment and Physical abuse

Minor: Suicide and Confinement

madamenovelist's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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: Death, Child death, Vomit, Trafficking, and Grief

kejianming's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, and Trafficking

Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Murder, and Grief

Minor: Vomit and Suicidal thoughts

emily_mh's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I LOVED THIS!!! I absolutely raced through this read and did not want to put it down. The pacing was PERFECT. Hur created an incredible atmosphere. The Jeju setting was described so vividly and was the perfect backdrop for the plot. The historical context seeped into every aspect of the story and was done incredibly well; it really piqued my interest in this part of history. 

I will say that I did guess the resolution early on in the narrative, which would usually end up in a lower rating for a mystery/thriller book. But I don't want to mark it down because I loved it so much. I can't wait to read Hur's next book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, and Trafficking

Moderate: Child death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Confinement, Vomit, Rape, Violence, and Body horror

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Grief, Alcoholism, Addiction, Alcohol, Ableism, Excrement, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, and Slavery