❆ Crystal ❆

❆ Crystal ❆ asked:

Why aren't there some warnings that is has dark subject matter, torture, rape and violence to women? I assumed that it would skirt around some issues... You know it's happening, but it's not really detailed. But, that's not the case. There is some really touchy subject matter in this book and it may not appeal to everyone. I think there needs to be a warning to just people know.

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10 years ago
80 answers

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Gabriel Durst It is funny that you all want to read murder filled crime thrillers without the actual crime. Don't want to be forced to care about the victims or know their experience. You should place the same warning you propose on your bibles.

Of course she knew the PC police would be out with their torches and pitchforks. Kudos to Karin for ignoring your delicate sensibilities and challenging the status quo.

a. Your opinion is duly noted, and I disagree with the need for a warning. There's always the option to stop reading a book if it gets uncomfortable, and this book, in particular, foreshadowed what was going to happen for pages prior.

Stacy A lot of people thought this book was too graphic. A lot of people did not. But why the rude replies to those who thought it was too graphic? I read reviews after I finish a book on Goodreads all the time, and I have never seen people so defensive over their opinions on a book before. I find it strange that people are defending that they like reading about this gross level of violence by insulting those that don't.

Ivy123 I find the idea of warnings on books a slippery slope and also an infantilizing one because are we that delicate that we cannot make up our mind to stop reading or that everything must be strictly clearly labelled so that we don't get any sort of shock ever (as if we are toddlers rooting around in the cabinet under the sink)? That is the joy of reading. And besides that, if you read even two words of the back cover or any sort of review you'd know this book is hardcore, I mean it is after all Karin Slaughter, hello.

Emily Simmer i agree. i may have enjoyed the story without all the excruciating detail. i wish there was some kind of rating system that would indicate when a book went into this much detail about torture and rape. if i could remove it from my memory i would! honestly i've felt physical anxiety and nausea reading this.

Sarah Rodriguez The good thing about books is that if you don't like what you see/hear then it gives you the choice to stop reading it. Simple as that.

Teshai Close the book. Simple. Now you are asking an author to warn you before hand? Are you serious? Were you held at gun point to continue reading the book? Did you not know this author? Welcome to the real world. Welcome to the horror that some women, men and children face.
People must understand that these things happen every single day and need to take off their rose coloured glasses.

Fatmann66 Know your author.
If you have read any of Karin's other books you would know that she frequently writes about dark subject matter. She is very detailed in all aspects of her stories.
real life isn't censored; if your looking for vague and unrealistic stories pickup an abridged copy from some other author.

Andrea Glad you said this. I saw a list of books that were "the next GONE GIRL" and I picked this up. Could not believe how horrific the level of violence is. Great author, and go right ahead and write what you want, but I definitely think a bit of a blurb on the back jacket along the lines of "horrific, terrible, awful crimes against young women" would be of help!

Marti Howley I agree. the very graphic and detailed descriptions left me feeling sick and shocked and I felt too disturbed by the gruesome images of violent rape and murder to read the whole book. I would never watch a snuff movie as it would repulse me , so why would I want to read gratuitously violent descriptions of it without at least being warned in advance?

Gmaharriet To the folks who think there should be a warning... If you are too sensitive to read something graphic, you can always read reviews before starting any book. That's what reviews are for, to give you an idea of what the story is about and other people's reactions to it. If the reviews indicate the book will not be to your taste, don't buy it, don't check it out from a library, don't borrow it from a friend.

Most people have access to a computer these days. You can search for almost any book here on Goodreads. That will tell you all you need to know. Goodreads even has rating, though not for specific issues, but reading a few will give you plenty of warning. :)

Vicki Terrell I agree Crystal. We put warning labels on movies and music, why is there such an uproar over putting warning labels on books? To be honest, I have often been surprised by some of the content in 'Young Adult' books that I have read. I am not saying that books cannot contain such material. I myself enjoy Stephen King and have read a few of Karin's books. I just agree that warning labels can help readers decide if they want to spend their hard-earned money on a book only to stop reading it because it disturbs them (or causes trauma flashbacks) due to explicit writing. ;)

Rowanne Guys are you aware who the author is?! Bloody hell this is what makes her books great. As for warnings on the books? Get away. Lets not start with all that.
It's a f**cked up gritty, down to the details, horrific, crime feast which is like alllll her books. In fact, I thought this was a bit tame compared to some of others!

Juls I agree too! If I knew this was a book about snuff porn and rape I would have passed it by without a thought. The description should mention something to the affect that rape is involved.

Hannah It made me feel physically ill, and I was highly disappointed there was not a "warning" (for lack of a better word) against this book. I was so curious to find out what happened that I continued to read, but I did not like the violence at all. Definitely wasn't expecting that.

Lynda It is very sad (in my opinion, at least) to see great writing talent wasted by the telling of lengthy, vividly detailed episodes of perverted, sadistic cruelty...and then repeating and repeating the telling. My first thought was that only a very sick mind would find any kind of enjoyment or satisfaction in inventing and writing about such incidents. Then I thought that if the writer is as horrified as I am, only pure greed could justify offering it up to those who might relish it. Either way, I will never pick up another book by this author.

I read a lot, and normally pride myself in choosing books that leave me feeling edified or at least entertained. This was the first book that made me think that a rating system for books might be a good idea.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

Lisa I agree. It was hard to put down this book because of the suspense but I have to say that I felt....dirty (for lack of a better word) after reading it. I could have done without the graphic details.

Dee Ann I completely agree. There is no way that I would have read this knowing what it was about. It left me feeling disgusted and I couldn't get some of the images out of my head. Definitely needed a warning.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The detail is stomach churning.

Tanu Children’s books have been clearly labelled as such for decades. The reason video games and shows have ratings is for ease of watching and as a legal requirement (R18+, for instance), because a parent might put them on with a younger child present without being aware of the level of violence involved. It is to avoid younger audiences being exposed to graphic sex and graphic violence. It is only secondarily useful for adults who may be uncomfortable with graphic content themselves.

Ratings are also a holdover from the not-so-distant days of videos and free-to-air TV. These days, with Netflix and YouTube, parental controls and filters are an extra precaution.

Books should not need warnings. If you’re triggered, seek counselling as appropriate, close the book and avoid genres which you know will contain content you may be triggered by. It’s ridiculous to pick up a crime fiction book such as Slaughter’s and expect it to be squeaky clean. There are cozy mysteries if you want non-graphic content.

Danielle If you read the description and have issues with that subject matter, err on the side of caution and grab a different book with a different subject.

Cindi Eldred Such a delicate flower. Perhaps you should stick to Dr. Seuss. The genre is thriller, murder, with no guarantee of a happy ending. Strap in for the ride, or close the book and get off the coaster.

LaKendra Adesuyi I am not yet finished with this book but it is certainly interesting to say the least. The writing is superb, gripping and captivating. The story is deeply interesting. The imagery is so real that it catches your breath. Certainly not a read for children or sensitive adults. This story will cause you to grit your teeth, clutch your pearls and gasp in disbelief. Karin Slaughter did not come to play, this book is serious business. I loved it for all of the afore mentioned accolades but I was troubled at what I learned and what I felt and the ways that this book made me look at the world and the twisted people that live in it. However, I can't say that I wouldn't read another of her books. Overall - it's complicated :-)

Simone Thanks everyone. I will pass on this book.

Jennifer I don't know if there "needs" to be a warning, but I do agree with you that this is a very, very dark book and I would have liked some kind of pre-knowledge about the scenes.

Anna A lot of people here clearly do not have any respect for survivors of sexual assault with PTSD. Some people might want to know beforehand if a book is likely to cause a panic attack.

Richard Cosgrove I'm against warnings as they can potentially give away plot points. I think the description of the book as a 'chilling psychological thriller' should be enough to suggest that it's going to be a challenging read, and with the utmost of respect suggest that anybody who finds reading graphic literature too much should perhaps take a moment to check out an author's other work before they begin any book, or if they're disturbed by what they're reading put the book down and move onto something less challenging.

Gina I just picked this up at the library, because I have never heard of the author before. I will be returning it now before giving it a chance. I'm glad I read through these comments. I completely agree with this. I wish that there were some sort of key words like "rape, torture, human trafficking, etc." on the back of the book or something. That way, if you are sensitive to this type of thing, then maybe you can just avoid it all together at first glance.

Kristen Long Totally agree! I started to read it and then just couldn't handle the violence from the beginning, I had to quit a quarter of the way through because it was too triggering and a friend had told me that it got way more graphic than that. I had her tell me what happened and I'm glad I stopped reading it!

Kitti I managed to skim through some of the worst parts, but unfortunately saw more detail about this sick subject than I'd ever want to know. Now I'm near the end and just can't take it anymore. I need to find a way to find out how it ends without having to experience another woman's torture.

Thebrook78 I don't know about warnings, and I don't have delicate sensibilities... but when does a book *about* rape and snuff porn become a work *of* rape and snuff porn? After reading this I think I know the answer. It's like the author frowns, and shakes her head, and says "tsk, tsk, tsk"... then turns to us and winks.

Rowanne Guys are you aware who the author is?! Bloody hell this is what makes her books great. As for warnings on the books? Get away. Lets not start with all that.
It's a f**cked up gritty, down to the details, horrific, crime feast which is like alllll her books. In fact, I thought this was a bit tame compared to some of others!

Sara Murphy Thank you so much for writing this. I saw this recommended based on a few other books I'm interested in and the fact that I liked The Girl on the Train. I have a really hard time giving up on books I've started, and with books like this it ends up doing unnecessary harm to me. Glad that I can avoid it altogether.

Outi Aino Thank you for your texts. At least one reader is now warned about this and I'm seriously thinking if I should leave that to the library, as the words can haunt me for years... I have liked Karin Slaughter's former books (those translated to Finnish) but this sounds a bit too... eww, maybe I don't sleep very well after that. Thank you, seriously. I do appreciate your reviews.

Kate Most are missing the real point here: Julia’s family did not want to know, to see, to read what happened to her. As each one grasped pieces and finally the totality of her fate, their reactions create the plot development. What happened IS the book, the whole point of the story. Without that development it would not exist. With some sort of “warning” the plot would be revealed on the back cover. Why do you think so many readers were desperate to “find out what happened”? Karin Slaughter is a master of plot and character development and you have all proved what an excellent writer she is. When one slows reading, wishes to close one’s inner eyes, it means the scope of her work is touching you deeply. It is one of the main reasons people read this author. Please try to understand the extent of her success, and perhaps try to read a bit more carefully and thoughtfully when you read any book, especially so-called psychological thrillers.

Stephanie Personally, I do not like warnings on books, not because I do not think they can be helpful, but because sometimes a warning spoils part of the mystery of a book. For me, I always look at Goodreads reviews before I pick up a book if I am concerned, and often there are warnings available that way. I have had a few mysteries spoiled for me because someone mentioned "suicide" or something about danger to a child as a warning and it spoiled the end of the mystery for me. In this case, knowing about the dark subject matter would have spoiled how deep and dark the mystery went. I think if you are unsure about a genre, author, or story, it is always wise to look at reviews first to see what people are saying. In addition, testing books through the library first instead of buying them outright is also probably best so no one feels like their money is wasted.

Additionally, not everyone feels the same warnings are necessary. While a general "suicide" warning is straightforward, like I said, it could spoil the book if it is a major plot point. Similarly, if we don't go by concrete plot points and instead call things "violent" or "disturbing" or "dark", then that is up for interpretation. What is "disturbing" to one person may not be disturbing to someone else. What is violent to one person may not seem as violent to others. In that way, warnings are really personal and subjective and could deter someone from reading something and over-prepare them when, in their opinion, it was not a big issue.

On that note, I don't even like movie ratings at this point. I have worked myself up over movie ratings, thinking something was going to be gross and violent and it is actually humorously done or isn't as bad as my imagination made me believe. Not only that, but some ratings are so political or arbitrary they do not serve the purpose for which they were created.

I don't think you are wrong in wanting a heads up about what the book involves. However, I don't think official book ratings or warnings would be productive and could actually cause more issues with publishing and eventually censorship. I think the best thing is to always look up reviews ahead of time if you are sensitive to certain subject matter. I am sure there is a website or blog somewhere that keeps track of content and trigger warnings :)

yarty It's so ridiculously funny that the people whining about this comment all could have just followed their own advice.. and stopped reading it. Tv and movies have warnings for a reason, there would be no harm in applying the same system to books. It would affect almost no one.

Cheryl Most of Karin Slaughter's books are extremely graphic. You either are ok with that or your not. I was surprised when I read my first Slaughter book too... but not sure if they need warnings...

D This book set me in a deep deep depression for awhole . I deal with mental issues and it was very tough to read. I've never read another thrilled book quite as disturbing.

Jessie Well, thanks to all the comments on here, I am now dying to read this book. I happen to like a little "real world" in what I am reading. People, stop being so dang sensitive. Stop reading it if it is too much for you. And what my be too much for you is nothing to others.

Teresa just remember you can stop reading a book at anytime. It doesnt need censored nor does it need a warning label. At anytime you can stop reading a book, just because you start it doesnt mean you HAVE to finish it.

I don't like erotica in my books, but I don't demand a warning on the label telling me this. I just close the book and move on to the next one. I also dont bash the book or give it a poor rating either

Shannon Having suffered through some of the very same horrific (gratefully not the gruesome) detail of this book, and have heard many stories of survivors taken and 'torchered' who survived such horror through my ministry for survivors, it WAS shocking to suddenly have this detail. I never heard of the book and absent mindedly picked it up at SAMS of all places.... sounded interesting. I love a good read. And it was a GREAT READ...I do agree you need the detail, you need the entire story to make it 'real'...but I would have liked a disclaimer in the very beginning. There are more of us than you realize out there.

Kelly Cooke I honestly could not agree more, I thought that maybe it was just me thinking that this book was too much and way too graphic, describing very touchy and horrific subjects. I tried to put it politely in my review, but there was absolutely no need for it all, i agree there should be some type of warning! unfortunately I read and rated this book before I saw all of these warnings and comments below, otherwise I would have never read it! This book is definitely no where near my scene of mystery novel, very twisted indeed!

Ayny stick to young adult or Christian fiction

Michelle I loved this book until it became too violently descriptive. I had to jump pages of the story and then just became disinterested. This will be the last book that I buy from this author.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The detail is stomach churning.

Ruth Agree that warnings should be given about this kind of content. This one was unique in that the "horror story" doesn't begin until you are well into the book and have come to care about the characters. Kudos to the author for making me care enough about the characters to want to find out how things turned out.

Peggy Agree. Had to stop reading it after the description of the first movie she found. It came so out of the blue and was so horrific - unduly so, I think. I read to relax, not be mentally disturbed.

Jennifer Hoenig Agreed. I think I would have still read the book because I wouldn't have realized just how (for a lack of better word) serious the material was. Twenty four hours after reading the book and I am still upset. As someone commented, I feel "dirty" after reading the book.

Kathy

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Melissa Selcuk I could not agree more! I stopped reading it when Claire watched the first video. There should be a warning about what you are about to read.

Laurel Agreed -- didn't get far before I had to end it. I really want to know what happens with the characters, but I can't let this kind of content into my life. Is there any point where it lightens up?

Samoyed Lover To find book warnings, you can look up X trigger warnings, in this case, Pretty Girls, would be X. It’s hard for thriller novels to have trigger warning without giving away spoilers. If you’re worried about triggers, make it a habit to search the web for trigger warnings. Websites such as doesthedogdie.com are helpful for this.

Bobbie Do some research! This is exactly the type of story that holds my attention. I research the ratings, the author prior to purchasing. I also loved Silence of the Lambs and many others. There are authors out there who write without the violence and gore. Go find them! Happy reading!

Raymond Lamagna It is unjustified to belittle people for suggesting that a warning would be helpful or that the graphic nature of the book is unnecessary. At bottom, reading a book is an act of entertainment (and a bit of voyeurism). I found it uncomfortable that I was being "entertained" by reading the graphic depictions of rape, torture, mutilation, and murder. I would not have started the book had I known. For all the folks here to say "its just fiction" and "all in good fun"--you are desensitized to fact that you are participating in being entertained by reading about women being raped and murdered. The level of description here is gratuitous and an editor should have advised the author to take a more creative angle. I do not think it is "censorship" to raise that this is the case.

David Harten Watson I don't know about Goodreads, but on Amazon, every single time I tried to put a "content warning" in an Amazon review, Amazon deleted my review -- every single time!!!! Apparently, warning about adult content in books is absolutely verboten (forbidden) in Amazon reviews. That's why I've given up on putting content warnings in book reviews -- Amazon doesn't allow it.

Michelle GB I personally will not buy a book where there is kidnapping, children or animals involved with the words thriller/horror as it shows it will contain sensitive subjects. I also do not read books about the mafia as it does not interest me.

Fran Agree! I couldn't stomach it. Also felt the narration/writing wasn't enough to keep me motivated to slug it through the extremely gruesome, sick, evil, exceptionally perverse details of violence agains women. Thought the characters weren't realistic enough. Too incredible--almost like everything was just gratuitously perverse.

Eileen H. The is a website called Does the Dog Die that should help you navigate your triggers.

Madeline I agree that the amount of violence is over the top and not what I have come to expect when I see a popular, highly rated airport thriller. I have to admit when I pick up a female author, I do so with the hope that they will not have such a vivid and uniquely disgusting imagination for how to mutilate and humiliate a young female victim. Even if you put down the book after coming across the first disturbing mental picture, "there are things you can't unsee" (the authors own words). Books should definitely be rated for types and levels of violent imagery. The violence in this book is beyond anything I could have imagined on my own, and I found it deeply disturbing. Thrillers should be fun, not upsetting. Murder mystery does not exactly quantify vivid descriptions of whatever the fuck "murder porn" is.

Rebecca Grow the hell up.

Michele Cryan A better writer would not have been this graphic but I'm sure the gruesome details were enjoyed by plenty of people - sadly.

Judy I haven't read this but was considering it after hearing about it from a booktuber. Now that I've seen these comments, no thank you. Once upon a time, I could read these books and wasn't terribly bothered by them. Once I had kids, I lost all interest in this type of book. As my kids got older, especially my daughter, my dislike for this type of book only grew. Just wondering if anyone else can relate....

L. Whitt Agreed. Not so much the warning - it is up to us to continue or stop reading, but I thought the actual subject matter should have been foreshadowed. I finally put it down when they got to gutting the girls like deer. That was not necessary. We already despised the evil characters and we already knew what they did. This level of detail felt sadistic.

Lisa Jones I agree, I got to the first horror section and was all 'uh oh' so skipped a bit ahead to try to work out if I want to keep reading and decided no. I can't stop thinking about it and I only read part of the book. There's thriller which keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes you itch to find out what happened and then there's horror and in my opinion this should be horror - which would be a warning label enough I would think and meant I wouldn't have picked it up to read.

Janet Rutherford I agree with Crystal. I read to escape and although I really enjoyed the style of the book, I was really turned off by the extreme violence and felt it was unnecessary sensationalized.

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Marie Thanks Crystal and others for the warning. I just picked up the audio version. I'll return it and get something a bit less graphic. I love mysteries, even murder ones, but extreme graphic violence turns me off too.

Fabiano Thanks for sharing your concern over the subject matter in this book. I had already added it to my TBR list.
Having that in mind, I must tell you to never watch a Nicolas Cage movie called "8mm".
Even though it's almost 20-years-old, don't watch it.
Be. Warned.

jo thank you crystal for making my decision *not* to read this book easier for me! i can TOTALLY do without the gory details.

Bud Why did you continue reading once you discovered it contained these horrible things?

Rejane M I agree too. I am a big fan of her books, but this one really shocked me. I had to jump pages of the story to finish it.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The detail is stomach churning.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The detail is stomach churning.

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

The Jubilant I agree 100%!

This should be labeled Horror in my opinion!

Sara Totally agree with you. I would have never started this book if I had known what I was about to experience. I just ended up skipping over all the dark parts.

Emilija Dufresne

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