Quick, there’s another pandemic only this once causes uncontrollable violence. Fortunately there’s a warning about animal cruelty so I was able to avoid it despite it all being retold again later in the book. All the men were brutes and all the women doormats in this extremely l o n g missive. I for one am getting very bored with authors whether it be fact or fiction who must push their own beliefs and ideologies. As far as I’m concerned it’s absolutely pointless as it all gets skimmed! The story would have been so much more powerful had it been a novella or at least condensed to a third of its current length.

Honestly, one of the best books I've read all year. Mostly because I felt the depiction of domestic violence, how cycles of abuse move through families, and how women participate in the patriarchy just hit all the nails on the head. That, coupled with a disease/pandemic story, I thought the author did wonders with everything in this book. I adored the characters. They all seemed real and imperfect. Would recommend to anyone!

I'm sad to say, but this book really didn't work for me. I found it really infuriating and difficult to read about the cycles of abuse at play within the family, both mother to daughter with Patricia and Chelsea and then with Chelsea's husband, David. I understand that this was the aim of the book, but the plot didn't hold my attention enough to push through my discomfort. I can think of many people for whom this story would resonate and would recommend it, but I personally did not enjoy my time with it at all.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

“Why is it that when men act out it’s always someone else’s fault?”

Chelsea is trapped in an abusive marriage to David. Every day, his belittlement of her and his anger increases. Their two daughters Ellie and Brooklyn know to sleep with a baracade at their bedroom door. Her mother, Patricia, cares more about her status at the country club than the danger Chelsea is in. It’s an impossible situation. That is, until a new pandemic appears. People are silently attacking and killing people with their bare hands. Will Chelsea who is already all too familiar with violence, find an escape in a pandemic?

At 576 pages long, The Violence isn’t a quick read, nor is it an easy read but it certainly is a gripping read. The plot unfolds through Chelsea, Ellie and Patricia’s narratives and each holds a mirror up to society and how women can be treated as second class citizens, property and status symbols throughout their life. There is a strong feminist message throughout and lots of salient passages that I found myself highlighting as I read. The experience of reading The Violence is a bit of an antithesis for me- the tension and the gore in the book makes for uncomfortable reading, but at the same time, some of the characters are so awful that actually I wouldn’t shed any tears if the were the victim of someone “storming” whilst infected with The Violence.
It was a bit far fetched at points and a little repetitive at others but the characters arcs were spot on and I loved how my opinion of one of the characters changed as the chapters stacked up. The ending was fantastic.

It’s a good addition to the thriller, speculative and dystopian genres. I am glad I read it and it will stay with me for a while, I am sure.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book.

I loved this. Loved loved loved! I do love a good virus/pandemic/infected book and this was definitely a different spin on the usual rage story. It went in directions I did not see coming and it brought out so many emotions. I enjoyed the multiple POV storyline, and the fact that it wasn’t predictable at all. This could easily be a tv show that I would binge watch in an instant. Ramp this right up your TBR immediately!

Where do I start with this review?
On one hand I did enjoy this book and on the other hand I didn't.
First off, I was on board with the plot being about a pandemic that turns people violent and found myself enjoying it.
Then as the story develops, I found the whole plot involving Chelsea to be utterly bizarre and out of left field and actually felt like the story became quite boring. I could have cut all of the chapters about Chelsea from this book and I probably would have enjoyed it a lot more.
After that the plot seemed to meander around and it definitely didn't need to be over 500 pages long.
Also every single male character in this book is written as completely disgusting human beings, so much so it really comes across like the author hates men.

A really original premise.
A plague of violence sweeps the land, pushing your inner feelings straight out of you into the world.
The book follows women dealing with this.

This book is shocking, horrifying and captivating.

Definitely give it a read

This book definitely held up to its title of being "violent". I found the start of the book quite unpleasant to read and would not recommend this book to anyone who has been in abusive relationship or to children of any age.

The book was written well and the character development was good. I felt that the plot of the book was quite well though out and that the ending of the book felt abrupt and slightly rushed.

After reading this title I would not recommend reading any books by this author in the future.

The ebook was well formatted and included an easy to read font. I did not spot any major typos or spelling mistakes just was not to my taste.

A timely post-COVID novel exploring a new pandemic--the Violence, which provokes its victims to have sudden murderous urges. Delilah Dawson cleary understands action and how to write empowering female characters, but I feel that the pacing of this story really dragged. Separating the POV characters early on probably wasn't the right call for this novel, but I still enjoyed Dawson's writing.

So much of The Violence is a knife to the heart. I was amazed by the speed and potency at which I invested in Chelsea and her daughters. The cruelty they're continuously dealt by the very people that are supposed to love and protect them is both devastating and terrifying.

Told in third we follow three generations of women in the Martin family; Chelsea, Ellie and Patricia. All of whom have been oppressed and abused by men and are now separately fighting to survive their own predicaments in a world infected by obscene uncontrollable violence.

Dawson did a fantastic job with the character development of all three women, but Patricia stood out most. After igniting my instant hatred of the grandmother with her appalling behaviour, Dawson gently and slowly dismantled my first opinions leaving me surprised to care as much for Patricia as the others.

Most of the men in The Violence whilst heavily stereotyped were still terrifying, their actions and motives so true to life it almost hurt to read. Dawson balances this well with the found-family trope I can never resist; a group of damaged outcasts supporting and caring for one another. The beauty in this plot line replenishes hope in humanity and gives the reader some much needed relief from the bleak desperation of a world gone mad.

I wasn't a fan of the frequent comparison between Florida during the fictional Violence virus and Florida during Covid. Though it may be a handy benchmark to use when describing the state of the world I prefer books not raise it quite as often as Dawson does here. I read for escapism and certainly not to be reminded of what we've been living through.
This was just a minor personal annoyance, I've actually seen many reviewers state the opposite; some prefer to see Covid mentioned in modern day stories.

I adored everything about The Violence. It's well written with perfect pacing, believable characters, intense emotion and the perfect ending.
*You'll need to stomach some extreme brutality against people and animals but if you can handle that I highly recommend you pick this up.

I really enjoyed this book ! Set towards the end of the covid pandemic , The Violence is the new virus to keep us locked in our homes .
Do be wary of triggers of domestic violence in this book which can get quite graphic but completely essential to the plot .
•very clever plot idea . Mixing domestic abuse with The Violence .
• different POV which give us great perspectives.
• some good twists and turns.
• slightly dragged out in the middle .
• great for dystopian/ post apocalyptic fans .
• characters you can really love & hate .
A great dystopian book that will keep you gripped from beginning to end .

This book! I LOVED it!
@delilahsdawson has written an amazing book with this one.
I actually had to stop myself reading at night because I knew I would just read all night long, which is a bad thing when you have a teething nearly 2 year old.
I was holding my breath at points, reading with wide-eyes willing myself to read faster and faster This is compared to a lot of other books like The Power or Station Eleven (which I also love), but I think it stands on its own. It's powerful, has complex characters, great character arcs and development. I don't think I have a negative thought about it.
Thanks @netgalley for the chance to read this one.

"Monsters need to know that you see them and are frightened of them, that they're bigger and more important than you. If you run or cry, they like that. But if you stand up to them or —even better—don't care about them, they falter."

The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson is a gripping dystopian thriller containing themes of domestic violence.

In a post-Covid world a new virus emerges. The Violence, as it's called, turns people into mindless murderers leaving them with no recollection of the bloody mess they've left behind. It's in this Violence-torn America that we follow three generations of women struggle for survival.

I flew through this book. It is well-paced and full of turns, and I was captivated by these characters who in defiance of their brokenness and trauma found the will to rebuild themselves.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

An absolutely amazing novel, that I have seen compared to a mix of The Power, Station Eleven and The Road, and while it has elements of all three, The Violence is most certainly it's own beast. Set after COVID ( giving the author a chance to make a bit of commentary on both the governments and the population's response), a new pandemic is sweeping the world. The Violence produces a temporary single minded rage that causes it's victim to attack the nearest person, usually ending in murder. While it is this rage/pandemic that is the plot point that propels the narrative, Dawson has another topic at the core of the novel, that of domestic violence. By having three different generations of women from the same family as the main characters, the author gets to discuss domestic violence in its many forms. Not a page goes by without a look at a survivor, how they coped (or didn't), what life was like for them. Cleverly Dawson does not dive into the (frighteningly large) statistics, and keeps the focus on the personal level.