Animal Cruelty, Abuse & Torture – Page 30

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

Before the nightmare, Yeong-hye and her husband lived an ordinary life. But when splintering, blood-soaked images start haunting her thoughts, Yeong-hye decides to purge her mind and renounce eating meat. In a country where societal mores are strictly obeyed, Yeong-hye’s decision to embrace a more “plant-like” existence is a shocking act of subversion. And as her passive rebellion manifests in ever more extreme and frightening forms, scandal, abuse, and estrangement begin to send Yeong-hye spiralling deep into the spaces of her fantasy. In a complete metamorph… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Misogyny
Rape
Abuse of a disabled person
Cheating
Eating disorder & disordered eating
Self-harm
Delusions
Psychiatric hospitalisation
Animal death & cruelty

Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore

Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore

Four years after Bitterblue left off, a new land has been discovered to the east: Torla; and the closest nation to Monsea is Winterkeep. Winterkeep is a land of miracles, a democratic republic run by people who like each other, where people speak to telepathic sea creatures, adopt telepathic foxes as pets, and fly across the sky in ships attached to balloons.

But when Bitterblue’s envoys to Winterkeep drown under suspicious circumstances, she and Giddon and her half sister, Hava, set off to discover the truth–putting both Bitterblue’s life and Giddon’s heart to the test when Bitterbue is kidnapped. Giddon believes she has drowned, leaving him and Hava to solve the mystery of what’s wrong in Winterkeep… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Slut shaming
Sexual harassment
Parental abuse
Emotional abuse & gaslighting
Blood depiction
Murder
Kidnapping
Drowning
Animal abuse

Fire by Kristin Cashore

Fire by Kristin Cashore

She is the last of her kind… It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Rape mentioned
Attempted sexual assault
Cheating
Suicide
Pregnancy from rape mentioned
Death of a father
Murder
Torture
Loss of autonomy (mind control)
Animal attack
Animal abuse

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.

She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po.

She never expects to learn the truth behind her Grace—or the terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Rape mentioned
Paedophilia & child sexual abuse
Sexual harassment
Child abuse
Coerced suicide mentioned
Alcohol consumption
Nonconsensual drugging
Blood & physical injury depiction
Death of a mother
Murder
Knife violence
Near-death experience from hypothermia
Animal attack
Animal abuse

The Midnight Library of Matt Haig

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Somewhere out beyond the edge of the universe there is a library that contains an infinite number of books, each one the story of another reality. One tells the story of your life as it is, along with another book for the other life you could have lived if you had made a different choice at any point in your life. While we all wonder how our lives might have been, what if you had the chance to go to the library and see for yourself? Would any of these other lives truly be better?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Depression discussed (protagonist)
Alcoholism
Panic attack
Suicide, suicidal ideation & attempted suicide (protagonist, on-page)
Self-harm mentioned
Drug abuse
Terminal illness & cancer
Emesis
Death of a parent
Death of a sibling
Car accident
Drowning mentioned
Death of a pet (cat) & animal cruelty mentioned

Hidden Bodies by Caroline Kepnes

Hidden Bodies by Caroline Kepnes

Joe Goldberg is no stranger to hiding bodies. In the past ten years, this thirty-something has buried four of them, collateral damage in his quest for love. Now he’s heading west to Los Angeles, the city of second chances, determined to put his past behind him.

In Hollywood, Joe blends in effortlessly with the other young upstarts. He eats guac, works in a bookstore, and flirts with a journalist neighbor. But while others seem fixated on their own reflections, Joe can’t stop looking over his shoulder. The problem with hidden bodies is that they don’t always stay that way. They re-emerge, like dark thoughts, multiplying and threatening to destroy what Joe wants most: true love. And when he finds it in a darkened room in Soho House, he’s more desperate than ever to keep his secrets buried. He doesn’t want to hurt his new girlfriend—he wants to be with her forever. But if she ever finds out what he’s done, he may not have a choice…

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Misogyny
Substance addiction
Murder
Stalking (theme)
Animal abuse mentioned

Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi

Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi

Jack Holloway works alone, for reasons he doesn’t care to talk about. Hundreds of miles from ZaraCorp’s headquarters on planet, 178 light-years from the corporation’s headquarters on Earth, Jack is content as an independent contractor, prospecting and surveying at his own pace. As for his past, that’s not up for discussion.

Then, in the wake of an accidental cliff collapse, Jack discovers a seam of unimaginably valuable jewels, to which he manages to lay legal claim just as ZaraCorp is cancelling their contract with him for his part in causing the collapse. Briefly in the catbird seat, legally speaking, Jack pressures ZaraCorp into recognizing his claim, and cuts them in as partners to help extract the wealth… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Murder & attempted murder
Fire
Animal death
Animal cruelty

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara

For more than ten years, a mysterious and violent predator committed fifty sexual assaults in Northern California before moving south, where he perpetrated ten sadistic murders. Then he disappeared, eluding capture by multiple police forces and some of the best detectives in the area.

Three decades later, Michelle McNamara, a true crime journalist who created the popular website TrueCrimeDiary.com, was determined to find the violent psychopath she called “the Golden State Killer.” Michelle pored over police reports, interviewed victims, and embedded herself in the online communities that were as obsessed with the case as she was.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Rape
Murder
Home invasion
Animal cruelty

Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs

Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs

My name is Mercedes Athena Thompson Hauptman, and I am a car mechanic. And a coyote shapeshifter. And the mate of the Alpha of the Columbia Basin werewolf pack.

Even so, none of that would have gotten me into trouble if, a few months ago, I hadn’t stood upon a bridge and taken responsibility for the safety of the citizens who lived in our territory. It seemed like the thing to do at the time. It should have only involved hunting down killer goblins, zombie goats, and an occasional troll. Instead, our home was viewed as neutral ground, a place where humans would feel safe to come and treat with the fae.

The reality is that nothing and no one is safe. As generals and politicians face off with the Gray Lords of the fae, a storm is coming and her name is Death. But we are pack, and we have given our word. We will die to keep it.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Animal abuse
Torture