Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

The Strangers by Katherena Vermette

3 reviews

lillypowell's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Addiction, and Child death

Moderate: Alcohol, Abortion, Drug use, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Medical content

Minor: Colonisation and Pandemic/Epidemic

ferrgus19's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

The Strangers picks up where The Break left off.

It starts with Phoenix Stranger pregnant and in jail. The scenes of Phoenix handcuffed to the bed while giving birth and then having to give up her newborn son after holding him briefly are some of the most harrowing I've read. The book then follows the ups and mostly downs of the rest of the Stranger family: Phoenix's drug-addicted mother, Elsie, ever hopeful of turning her life around and having a family with her daughters; her tough, emotionally distant, and secretly long-suffering grandmother, Margaret; and her studious younger sister, Cedar, who spends time in foster homes and eventually moves in with her father's second family.

It's pretty bleak, but there are some glimmers of hope at the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical content, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

sarah984's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

I was a little bit hesitant going into this one because I was worried it might turn into a sort of "redemption arc" for Phoenix where she's suddenly not at fault anymore for the part she played in the events of The Break. I really enjoyed it, though.

At its heart, this is a book about mothers and daughters, and the way people try (and sometimes fail) to connect. The characters all have unique voices (though I don't get why some were first person and some were third person) and perspectives. It was interesting to read about the same events from the wildly differing points of view of two characters who were both there. There were a few parts that felt kind of like they were included to check off a list (one character’s abortion felt a little "okay I haven't included this experience yet" for me).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Ableism, Abortion, Alcohol, Child death, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Medical content, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, and Physical abuse

Minor: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Vomit