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Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

The Stranger by Albert Camus

28 reviews

lillelow's review against another edition

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

4.0

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thyrine's review against another edition

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challenging reflective medium-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

4.5

Albert Camus tackles the idea of Nihilism, emphasising the absurdity of life within the pages, and give us a moral dilemma that will eat your brain in the end: "In front of the inevitable, does anything truly holds any meaning?". 

We watch the protagonist, Meursault, navigate this exact question through the book until the very end. I cannot explain more than this since it'll go on spoiler territory, but I 100% recommend you to give it a chance. 

And if you don't get the book the first time, take a break, and come back for a reread another time. You can read it in one sitting alone (I myself read it in three hours when I got it). This is one of those books people might not understand on a first sitting and that's totally fine! 
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tirosen's review against another edition

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challenging dark fast-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

4.75

NOTE: It's recommended to read The Myth of Sisyphus before diving into this book. Though it may appear as a straightforward book - a man kills another man - towards the end all the philosophical baggage may overwhelm you, as it did for me. If you already have a strong understanding of Absurdism, then go ahead and dive into this dark yet profound world Camus has created.
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kanderoo's review against another edition

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

3.0

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tiaroseshang's review

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

3.0

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happyknitter2020's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

4.0

Such a tragic little book. If only they had understand that he had autism he could have been supported. 

An isolated man's life...his mother dies, a girl wants to marry him within days, his neighbour abusing his dog, his friend beung abusive, violent and exploiting women & them the pressure of it all building in his head, his lack of understanding & the intens  sun, the heat...led him to shoot a gun & kill a man he had never met before on a beach. 

No wonder he didn't understand why...

Some of the sentences in the following chapters are stunning. The way his mind manages being in Prison, the Court proceedings & the sentence passed...utterly tragic, will stay with me for a long time.

Glad I have found Camus, will read more of his books.
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izzyreading's review against another edition

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

4.0

Made me feel an intense sadness and hopelessness after i finished reading it.
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martin888's review against another edition

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dark inspiring reflective sad slow-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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biobeetle's review

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

3.75

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_bailey_reads_'s review against another edition

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

1.0

This was truly the worst book I’ve ever read. Not only was the main character completely insufferable but all the other characters were equally as awful. The idea of the main character being an “ordinary man” is disturbing. Nothing about him is ordinary in my book. The only thing I liked about the book was it’s overall creepy and dark tone. Otherwise I thought it was pointless, there is no development or growth. It was dull and borderline unreadable. 

Maybe I just completely missed the mark but I’m 99.9% certain the main character is a psychopath and truly has no emotions. He has no redeeming qualities. Allowing Raymond to do what he did is literally exhibit A. 
Also Marie is a complete idiot.
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