Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

The Strangers by Katherena Vermette

6 reviews

haileydonna's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Pandemic/Epidemic, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Grief, Death, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, Addiction, Alcoholism, Abortion, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

ashleydianneconrad's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Abortion, Addiction, Child abuse, and Drug abuse

alisonburnis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-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

3.75

The Strangers doesn’t hold back, laying bare trauma, substance use, abuse, assault, incarceration, foster care, and even more pain. Loosely connected to Vermette’s novel The Break, this is a companion, diving more into the life of Phoenix from the first book, and her family. 

Vermette is excellent at taking trauma and tragedy and making it a story of love and hope. The Strangers isn’t as tight as The Break, and it touches on the pandemic in a way that didn’t work for me (possibly because I’m not ready yet), but it is still a solid book, asking questions about trauma and evading simple judgment or providing answers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Violence

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

meaghans_library's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-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, Alcoholism, Child death, Colonisation, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Death, Domestic abuse, and Racism