Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Harrow la Novena by Tamsyn Muir

16 reviews

hayleyvem's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Murder, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Bullying

Moderate: Pregnancy, Chronic illness, Genocide, Infertility, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Cancer, and Suicide

Minor: Child death and Death of parent

amanda_bristol's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Abandonment, Violence, and Death of parent

Minor: Body horror, Murder, Medical content, Bullying, Vomit, Cancer, Cannibalism, and Gore

irisraerah's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

If you're looking for a book that's as awesome as it is confusing, Harrow is a great option, but you absolutely must read Gideon the Ninth first. I fell completely in love with Muir's world in this book. I'd thoughted I'd loved it before but that was a mere crush. A universe of goth and often gory magic that spends this book expanding on all of the above is exactly my cup of tea (though Harrow herself would pick a different comparison, being a fan of neither tea nor words under four syllables), all while I grew to care more and more about each of the characters involved.

Also, as a queer woman, there is something so deeply comfortable and affirming about reading a story like this, full of queer characters, relationships, and tragedy, but without queerness being the source of any tension or tragedy. Queerness is simply a fact of life in a way that feels like home, though I personally have never lived as part of a space faring necromantic society, and my swordplay has been limited to a single college fencing credit. 

A word of caution to the squeamish reader: gore and the aesthetics of gore feature strongly in this series, though this is a case where the book's cover should have warned you about that clearly enough. Despite the goriness, I find Muir's setting to actually be quite beautiful in the grotesque, and scenes that might be something of nightmare felt vivid and terrific.

Having praised the highbrow content, I'd be remiss to not mention the low: spoilers for jokes you'll want to be caught off guard by as you read them in read time.

Spoiler

How the hell did Muir pull off "choke me daddy," "none pizza with left beef," and "Hi, *double spoiler,* I'm Dad" in a serious book? I'm impressed.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Blood, Death, Grief, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Gun violence, Medical content, Suicide, and Death of parent

Minor: Alcohol, Cancer, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Vomit, War, Pregnancy, and Torture

msradiosilence's review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, War, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Death, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Infertility, Medical content, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, and Vomit

devirtualized's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a very special book. And by book I mean long, mind-bending, utterly beautiful poem - or love letter - or both.

I feel like I don’t have high enough praise to give this but I will try. This prose is otherworldly. It is a surreal and devastating painting of grief and it is a derisive remark and a dad joke all in one. There really is not a single word that goes to waste. 

Harrow is an intriguing & exquisite character, warped by pain and unanswered questions, but still resolute and sincere. She’s sharply clever but also, endearingly, dumb-as-rocks and a little or a lot pathetic because of it. And she’s kind of impossible not to love. Like practically everyone Harrow meets, I too have a strong case of Nonagesimitis. 

The character dynamics are unbelievably tantalizing, incomprehensible (complimentary) and endlessly entertaining - and much the same can be said for the plot. 

I think I probably have a lot more to say. I have many questions too but I really wouldn’t have it any other way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Violence, Blood, Cursing, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit

Moderate: Gun violence, Child death, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Cancer, and Suicide

catboykit's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Cursing, and Violence

Moderate: Cancer, Medical content, Grief, and Death

Minor: Vomit, Sexual content, and War

jayecard's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Vomit, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Kidnapping, Blood, Body horror, Cancer, Grief, and Gore

Minor: Pregnancy, Death of parent, and Suicidal thoughts

untoworthy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Death, Suicide attempt, and Suicide

Moderate: Death of parent and Cancer

Minor: Child death, Child abuse, and Sexual assault

gayghostprince's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I'm sad wtf :'(

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Gun violence, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death of parent, Death, Violence, Suicide, Body horror, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Cursing, Child abuse, Mental illness, War, Vomit, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Infidelity, Suicide attempt, Medical content, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Cancer, War, Chronic illness, and Suicidal thoughts

Spoiler

cw for lobotomies and brief apocalypse mentions

pbarrett5275's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

At first I wasn't sure if I'd like where the plot was headed after I finished the Gideon of Ninth. I soon released it didn't matter what I thought because I had no idea what was going on. The beginning of Harrow the Ninth can be tough, but ultimately this sequel lives up to it's predecessor and possible even more. Despite being quite perplexed, I found myself enjoying the new storyline as much as I was confused by it. This book is a bit darker, but still had plenty of good laughs, mystery, and soup. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters added to the mythology as well as those with newly expanded roles from the returning cast. Unlike Gideon, Harrow the Ninth actually takes place in space, and is filled with plenty of new adventure, expanded world building, and easily the best fight scene in the series to date.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gore, Mental illness, and Blood

Minor: Cancer, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, War, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol