Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

19 reviews

abbeyjreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

4.75 rounded up

this was an absolutely beautiful read and i thoroughly enjoyed it, so i have very little criticism, but i have found that the criticism i do have all stem from having read this through the lens of adaptation. david copperfield is one of my favorite novels, it’s a story i have loved for as long as i can remember, so i am very familiar with its characters, its tone, its story beats. and this hit a lot of those notes! but there were a few missteps that ultimately resulted in .25 deduction on the rating. 

this is not “inspired by” in the sense that it has the zest and spirit of the original content, this is a tried and true retelling. every major story beat is reworked and seamlessly woven into its new setting. nothing lost its power here, the highs felt high and lows were as low as you were framed to expect from the original. my two biggest qualms were the characterization and utilization of Mr. McCobb (Mr. Micawber) and Miss Betsy (Betsy Trotwood), and some of Demon’s character development.  

Mr. Micawber and Betsy Trotwood are two of the BEST CHARACTERS in the original work and have such an astounding impact on david and his character; he becomes more hopeful and resilient because of them and their influence and they are both deeply impactful to him. these two entirely lost their footing here. Miss Betsy is really only seen in two chapters - and while she maintains a lot of her personality - she is really more of a distant force in demon’s life who places him where it is necessary for other characters to cater to him in the ways she did in the original. Mr. Micawber is a dubiously delightful character who you don’t respect as much as you admire - he can’t hold anything around him together but he can hold himself and that’s what matters. he is a beacon of positivity and - while an ultimately naive and deluded example - to david’s young and impressionable mind he is a bright spot in what has always been a sorry life. the mccobb family leaves no lasting impression upon demon here and if they left anything on the page its a sorry taste in your mouth. it just felt like two deeply impactful and memorable characters were squandered. 

this directly results in demon’s character and development evolving in an entirely different way. in the original, david is an ultimately cheerful and - sometimes naively - optimistic young man who persists in being a gentleman and a dreamer and an all around good human. obviously, demon’s story unravels with different elements that result in him exploring some much more personally dark places. instead of being subjected to squalid environments and lurid company, demon’s surroundings are a direct result of his own choices and vices. i did find demon’s narration to be charming and he does in time come full circle towards his expectations, but david’s original character is something that sticks with a reader. he is so resolute. so immovably good. i thought about david for months after finishing it, and demon will occupy a very different headspace for me. 

regardless, this was effortlessly beautiful and harrowing. it may have felt off kilter to me in very slight moments, but this drew me in so deep. i was so invested. and even though i knew what was coming - waiting for each beat to hit, each iconic moment to be reimagined - i was always surprised by how fresh it felt. 

if this did anything well - and it did, it did almost everything well - it found the hope, and it maintained it. dickens work has stood the test of time for a reason, and this knew exactly why. it held on to its spark of originality among a landscape that has been tirelessly traversed for almost 200 years. it was new eyes on an old soul. the world has not stopped turning, but the heart of this story will stay the same in every new century it sees. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Cursing, Violence, Grief, Miscarriage, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Murder, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

ynaiita_5896's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? No

5.0

🚍 Damon 'Demon Copperhead' was born to a teenaged single mother in a trailer park in Lee County, Virginia. He tells his life story from birth to adulthood, depicting how the odds were always stacked against him in a story of loss, love and survival.

🚍 Battling loneliness, poverty, substance abuse and a broken home, Demon's story never pauses for relief. Kingsolver is a genius and beautifully writes Demon's heartbreaking and hopeful story while still injecting moments of humour and warmth.

🚍 Adding her own twist to Charles Dickens' classic David Copperfield, the author shines the spotlight on the broken boys whom society have given up on because they are born into a cruel world, the one they've only ever truly known. Applause must also be given to the colourful, tragic, lovable characters in Demon's life that I rooted for.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Murder, Death, Death of parent, and Mental illness

abi_dutton's review

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Addiction, Murder, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Mental illness, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug use, and Grief

sabripolin's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

4.5

At first I was confident this would be a 5-star-er. About 3/4 the way through I seriously started to doubt the time I spent on this marathon of a read. Then the last… 1/8 really brought me back in. All the dots get connected. Themes come full circle. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Death of parent, Addiction, Child death, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Miscarriage, and Murder

Minor: Sexual assault

esther_floraa's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Trafficking, Violence, Emotional abuse, Racism, Cancer, Death, Child abuse, Classism, Drug use, Death of parent, Misogyny, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Rape, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

seanzie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

I enjoyed this book. The plot was powerful and applicable to people I love’s experiences. It did feel stressful and hard every time I went to listen. Maybe a bit long but certainly a book that makes you remember the experiences of those that might be so different from yours. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Violence, Addiction, Child death, Classism, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Death, Alcoholism, and Grief

kshertz's review

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

What a deep read! It’s a deep dive into growing up in the 90s in the south during the Opioid epidemic. It truly explained what it meant to grow up in a small town and why they have continued to struggle to thrive even today. As a city girl, it was very eye opening. What a heartbreaking life. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Classism, Death of parent, Blood, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Gore, Body horror, Bullying, Abortion, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Toxic friendship, Violence, Abandonment, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Child death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Murder, and Alcohol

bobbij94's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional

• 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

Mixed feelings about this one...I was very much immersed in this novel and honestly couldn't get enough. I personally enjoy this style of narration. I appreciate that this book sheds light on issues of poverty, trauma, and addiction.
I knock down some stars because something in this gives me the ick. Lots of stereotypes that goes from bad to worse. Very sad story that is the reality of thousands of Americans. 

Sad. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Animal death, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Abortion, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Grief, Sexual content, Violence, Drug abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs

hsieh's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad 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

5.0

Kingsolver writes a masterpiece here, a pointed critique of how capitalism fails America and its poorest, through the lens of the struggles of its foster children, the opioid crisis, and how so many people stereotype the rural people of America's forgotten heartland. But Kingsolver is never piteous, never condescending: her characters seek only to be met face to face, understood as full people.

Speaking of, Kingsolver writes characters that could jump off the pages. I cherish, hate and mourn for them like they're my own friends. They're so real I had to double check this wasn't an autobiography. I feel empty now without them.

One of the things I appreciate most about this book, however, is that it never feels like tragedy porn -- a trap I felt books like "A Little Life" sometimes fell into. Each tragedy is crushing, but not without hope; there's always characters on the margins rooting for the protagonist, and his community, to succeed. I only wish their analogues in real life could find the same support.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Racism, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Xenophobia, Addiction, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Child death, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Hate crime, Abortion, Homophobia, Murder, Ableism, and Gun violence

macykey's review

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-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

4.25

This book was excellent. The writing was gorgeous, the story was engrossing. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but the writing style seemed to change as Demon got older. It made me think the writing was reflecting his aging, which I thought was smart. There were a couple things that didn’t sit right with me or rubbed me the wrong way. I felt the ending was wrapped up too quickly. I saw the interpersonal development coming, but I wish it’d been done sooner. I also felt that some of the traumatic things that happened to Demon were a little more detailed than necessary. And I get people having nicknames, but sometimes they all just got lost in the story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Body horror, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Blood, Violence, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Death of parent, and Vomit

Moderate: Murder, Abandonment, Sexual violence, Rape, Pregnancy, and Self harm

Minor: Suicide, Miscarriage, Adult/minor relationship, Abortion, Cancer, and Car accident