Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

1452 reviews

alenaecook's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Incest, Blood, Cursing, Gun violence, Addiction, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Murder, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide

naomi_salters's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Car accident, Chronic illness, Drug use, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Cursing, Drug abuse, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Grief, Incest, Suicide, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Medical content, Self harm, Sexism, Addiction, Death, Body shaming, Hate crime, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Bullying, Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Animal death, and Violence

thegr1mreader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Rape, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Mental illness, Incest, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Antisemitism, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Physical abuse, Homophobia, Gun violence, and Death

redflower10's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was fast paced and engaging until the end. I loved the narrator's self-conscious prosaic anxiety. It's timeless - I had no idea it had been released in 1992 (despite being set in the 80s). There were moments of levity and clever humour despite the subject matter being so dark.

Just when things start to get a little sleepy at the end, Tartt tosses in the twincest and suicide(s), seemingly as an afterthought. Something perverse in me wishes she'd written more about the details of the Bacchanalian sex rituals.

A minor gripe, but my edition (bought 2024) was in desperate need of a copyeditor and proofreader! Its hard to believe this novel has been around for so many years with the number of words missing or misused. I could forgive this as a narrative device but it occurs too many times and too sporadically to count. Also, the phrasing starts to get a little repetitive after a while - there's only so many times you can hear about Henry's sweat beading on his forehead or wind gusting through the windows. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Death, and Suicide attempt

casswerk's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.0

I think I said it over and over again reading this book. It was a very detailed story that connects so many different worlds. My problem is that I hated all the characters so there was no one to root for which made it a hard read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Self harm, and Addiction

aposternak's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Incest

saryy's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Murder, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Suicide attempt

lovellcharlotte's review

5.0

 “…she really was older, not the glancing-eyed girl I had fallen in love with but no less beautiful for that; beautiful now in a way that a less excited my senses than tore at my very heart” 

 

“Mais, vrai, J'ai trop pleure! Les aubes sont navrantes.” 

 

“…and my life which I had thought was lost, stretched out indescribably precious and sweet before me.”

“Some things are too terrible to grasp at once. Other things - naked, sputtering, indelible in their horror - are too terrible to really grasp ever at all. It is only later, in solitude, in memory that the realisation dawns: when the ashes are cold; when the mourners have departed; when one looks around and finds oneself - quite to one's surprise - in an entirely different world.” 

 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug use, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Suicide, Self harm, and Suicide attempt

kirkcarp's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

5.0

Outstanding. While it took me a bit to get hooked, I then thought only of these characters as I went about my daily life. Each was so unique and fully-formed, and the story itself was intriguing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide

arthedgehog's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Incest, Gaslighting, Drug use, Drug abuse, Addiction, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Death, and Classism

Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Xenophobia, Gore, Death, Alcohol, Incest, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Racism, Toxic friendship, Forced institutionalization, Classism, Gun violence, Animal death, Islamophobia, Homophobia, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Murder, Infidelity, Antisemitism, Drug use, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Gun violence, Gore, Drug use, Classism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Medical content, Islamophobia, Cursing, Sexual assault, Rape, Abandonment, Car accident, Suicide, Sexism, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug abuse, Biphobia, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Mental illness, Adult/minor relationship, Religious bigotry, Eating disorder, Deportation, Racism, Homophobia, Antisemitism, Misogyny, and Incest