Tag Archives: Animal Cruelty, Abuse & Torture

Skandar and the Phantom Rider by AF Steadman

The Island shall have its revenge. Skandar Smith has achieved his dream to train as a unicorn rider. But as Skandar and his friends enter their second year at the Eyrie, a new threat arises. Immortal wild unicorns are somehow being killed, a prophecy warns of terrible danger, and elemental destruction begins to ravage the Island. Meanwhile, Skandar’s sister, Kenna, longs to join him – and Skandar is determined to help her, no matter what. As the storm gathers, can Skandar discover how to stop the Island tearing itself apart – before it’s too late for them all? 

Goodreads

Trigger & Content Warnings

Hate, Discrimination & Oppression

Sex & Sexual Violence

Abuse & Relationships

Mental Health & Suicide

Alcohol & Drugs

Pregnancy & Childbirth

Medical, Gore & Injury
  • Mentions of a child who is comatose for three weeks after falling from a cliff
Death & Loss

Violence & Crime
  • Battle/fight scenes involving fire and weapons
  • Loss of autonomy (possession)
War & Genocide

Natural Disasters
  • Earthquakes
  • Floods
  • Tornadoes & lightning storms
Animal Death & Cruelty
  • Animal injury
  • Animal death & cruelty
    • A unicorn is found dead
    • Animals are imprisoned and forced to compete in fighting rings where some die.

Given to the Sea by Mindy McGinnis

Given to the Sea by Mindy McGinnis

Everyone has a place. Khosa was born to be fed to the sea, to prevent the kind of wave that once destroyed the Kingdom of Stille. She can’t be sacrificed until she produces an heir, but human touch repulses her…except for the touch of the Indiri. Dara and Donil are the last of the Indiri, a native race with magic that’s seductive—a force of nature—but dwindling since the Pietra slaughtered their people. Witt leads the Pietra, the fierce warriors who are now marching on the Kingdom of Stille. The stone shores of Witt’s kingdom harbour a secret threat, and to ensure the… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Grap

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Attempted rape, on-page
  • Animal cruelty

The Last Laugh by Mindy McGinnis

The Last Laugh by Mindy McGinnis

Tress Montor murdered Felicity Turnado—but she might not have to live with the guilt for long. With an infected arm held together by duct tape, the panther who clawed her open on the loose, and the whole town on the hunt for the lost homecoming queen, the odds are stacked against Tress. As her mind slides deeper into delirium, Tress is haunted by the growing sound of Felicity’s heartbeat pulsing from the “best friend” charm around her fevered neck. Ribbit Usher has been a punchline his whole life—from his nickname to his latest turn as the unwitting star of a… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Grap

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Cheating recounted
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death of a parent recounted
  • Animal abuse

Dreamsnake by Vonda McIntyre

Dreamsnake by Vonda N. McIntyre

On an Earth scarred by nuclear war, Snake harnesses the power of venom to cure illnesses and vaccinate against disease. The healer can even ease patients into death with the power of her dreamsnake. But she is not respected and trusted by all, and when she tries to help a sick nomad child, the frightened clan kills her dreamsnake. Ashamed of being misjudged and grieving the loss of her dreamsnake, Snake has one choice to maintain her livelihood: she must travel to the city, which jealously guards its knowledge. And before she faces the prejudices and arrogance…. Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Grap

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Rape
  • Paedophilia
  • Child abuse
  • Substance addiction
  • Medical procedures
  • Torture
  • Animal cruelty

Almond by Sohn Won-Pyung

Almond by Sohn Won-Pyung

Yunjae was born with a brain condition called Alexithymia that makes it hard for him to feel emotions like fear or anger. He does not have friends—the two almond-shaped neurons located deep in his brain have seen to that—but his devoted mother and grandmother aren’t fazed by his condition. Their little home above his mother’s used bookstore is decorated with colorful post-it notes that remind him when to smile, when to say “thank you,” and when to laugh. Yunjae grows up content, even happy, with his small family in this quiet, peaceful space. Then on Christmas Eve… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Grap

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism
  • Alexithymia (theme)
  • Murder of a grandmother by stabbing, on-page
  • Physical assault of a mother resulting in hospitalisation, on-page
  • Animal death & abuse
  • Bullying

Tattered Stars by Catherine Cowles

Tattered Stars by Catherine Cowles

Be brave. Just for sixty seconds. Twenty breaths. It took every ounce of my courage to return to the small town I fled all those years ago. But I should’ve known he’d hate me. How could he not when my father’s blood still runs through my veins? Yet here I am, desperate for a chance to make things right. Even if it means facing the family my father almost destroyed and the boy with the dark eyes—now grown—who still haunts my dreams. I never expected just how explosive things would turn between us. He’s the last person I should want. Yet, somehow, I keep drawing closer—so close I know I’ll… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Child abuse recounted
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a parent
  • Attempted murder
  • Gun violence
  • Physical assault
  • Stalking
  • Arson
  • Kidnapping & attempted kidnapping
  • Animal cruelty & injury, on-page (dog)

The Waitress by Nina Manning

The Waitress by Nina Manning

Nameless. Faceless. Deadly? Waitress Kit Lowman knows that people look down on her and the job she does. But being anonymous offers Kit safety and security and allows her own terrible secrets to remain hidden. And then Kit’s luck changes, and she suddenly faces a terrible dilemma: reveal her true identity and accept that life will never be the same. Or stay in the shadows…where she hopes she’ll be safe? But secrets can’t stay hidden forever. And the more Kit tries to hide away, the more someone makes it clear that they are going to make her pay for what she did.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Depression
  • Animal cruelty
  • Animal death (dog)

The Serial Killer’s Girl by LH Stacey

The Serial Killer’s Girl by L.H. Stacey

Lexi Jakes thought she could run from her past. But when her biological mother is found dead, strangled with a red silk scarf and holding a chess piece, Lexi knows that her worst nightmare has come true. Because the murder has all the hallmarks of her own serial killer father, renown strangler Peter Graves. Now with her own precious daughter’s life in danger, Lexi will do anything to keep her child safe…she is her father’s daughter after all.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Murder of a mother by strangulation
  • Imprisonment of a parent for serial murders
  • Animal abuse

The Magpie Lord by KJ Charles

The Magpie Lord by K.J. Charles

Exiled to China for twenty years, Lucien Vaudrey never planned to return to England. But with the mysterious deaths of his father and brother, it seems the new Lord Crane has inherited an earldom. He’s also inherited his family’s enemies. He needs magical assistance, fast. He doesn’t expect it to turn up angry. Magician Stephen Day has good reason to hate Crane’s family. Unfortunately, it’s his job to deal with supernatural threats. Besides, the earl is unlike any aristocrat he’s ever met, with the tattoos, the attitude… and the way Crane seems determined to get him into... Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Antisemitism
  • Homomisia
  • Dubious consent scenario
  • Sexual assault mentioned
  • Incest mentioned
  • Suicide, off-page
  • Attempted suicide, on-page
  • Self harm
  • Animal abuse
  • Animal death

When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain

When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain

Anna Hart is a missing persons detective in San Francisco. When tragedy strikes her personal life, Anna, desperate and numb, flees to the Northern California village of Mendocino to grieve. She lived there as a child with her beloved foster parents, and now she believes it might be the only place left for her. Yet the day she arrives, she learns a local teenage girl has gone missing. The crime feels frighteningly reminiscent of the most crucial time in Anna’s childhood, when the unsolved murder of a young girl touched Mendocino and changed the community forever… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Physical child abuse
  • Paedophilia & child sexual abuse
  • Alcoholism
  • Animal abuse