Reviews tagging 'Violence'

El Test by Sylvain Neuvel

36 reviews

rebeccapughs's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

I think I can see what the author was trying to do, but it just isn’t for me. I didn’t like the writing style, the characters or anything about it really. I only finished the book because it is so short. 
I disliked it when I first finished it but the more I think about it the more annoyed I am at it.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Murder

bookbird's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Punchy and interesting and terribly sad. Would love to see this premise expanded. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Violence, Blood, Islamophobia, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, and Murder

xwritingstoriesx's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.75

A high tech, virtual reality horror

that discusses social issues such as immigration and citizenship. I went into this expecting a literal test and I was pleasantly surprised by the actual concept of this novella. It really paints a picture of what the UK could become if UKIP (or another far right, nationalist party) were to win an election in the distant future. The extreme nationalism, xenophobia and lack of human empathy was disturbing to read. The fixation on data and numbers taking priority over human safety and wellbeing is an issue we are presently dealing with as a country. To read pages upon pages of this was horrifying, nevermind experiencing it in real life and being subjected to dehumanising screenings of worthiness. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, and Deportation

blackcatkai's review against another edition

challenging tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I need to get my thoughts in order before I can properly review this one. RTC

UPDATE! i never did quite get my thoughts in order then i forgot to come back. overall, this one started strong but i didnt quite care for the middle or ending of this one. it wasnt bad, just bits here and there that threw me out of the story.

CW:  Gun violence, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Child abuse, Fatphobia/body shaming, grief, murder, casual ableism

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, and Murder

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Grief

Minor: Ableism

cyskafoxtail's review against another edition

emotional tense fast-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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, and Death of parent

Moderate: Violence and Suicide attempt

marareading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-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

4.0

This is a quick and intense read. It will definitely stay with me for a long time. It is very thought provoking. What happens when we push too far? What happens when the parameters aren't set properly? How do we recover when things go wrong?

This book is about a man who goes in to take his citizenship test and he gets more than he planned for. I could never have imagined the twists in this book. So much packed into a short book. I loved it. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

kstericker's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Death of parent

Minor: Hate crime, Racism, and Islamophobia

dealingwithdragons's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Dementia, and Abortion

illogical's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, and Violence

dalmavatai's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

This book was definitely memorable and incredibly unique. 

As social commentary, I believe this book is extremely successful. The way that it explores the dangers of the intersection between scientific technology and xenophobia in Britain, all while the country purports to be against prejudice and discrimination, was radical in the best way possible. The dystopian future Neuvel imagines in this short story is a radical critique of our own time and the ways in which 'Western' countries in particular think that they are liberal and accepting, all while perpetuating a status quo that's still very xenophobic, racist, and Islamophobic. 

However, this book wasn't for me in other ways. The explanations of science definitely went way over my head, especially because I listened to the audiobook and couldn't go back if I didn't grasp something fully. I also thought that the plot point towards the end, while I understand its function as commentary, was a bit random and I could not fully appreciate its inclusion in the story, especially as so much was going on already that I found it a bit hard to follow. 

Short stories are not terribly likely to get a very high rating from me because I can't connect to the characters in such a short period of time, but this is a short story that I believe is definitely worth the read even for those not into science fiction. Maybe read the physical book (perhaps along with the audio because Neal Shah's performance is superb) if you want to stay on top of everything that's going on, though!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Murder

Minor: Fatphobia