Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

13 reviews

vireogirl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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

3.75

Labor Day Camping book #1. Fantasy books are weird. I think it was pretty good but not very experienced with them. I got lost when a second perspective was added but did find it again later. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism

abicaro17's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad 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

If Alix E. Harrow has no fans I an dead. This women can't write a bad book. As I am finished reading all of Harrows full length books I will say this, her stories may start slow but they never disappoint. January is a bi racial girl living in her father's employers house while he travels the world to find treasures. When she discovers a door to another world at age 7, she opens up her own world to possibilities beyond comprehension and a tale of true love that spans decades and portals. I adored this book, no surprise there. The way this is written almost as a letter to a friend depicting a gruesome and enchanting tale of escape, found family, and adventure, is so beautiful and typical of Harrow. I can never recommend her books enough even if they ruin all other books for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

oceanescence's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Racism and Death of parent

Minor: Animal death and Cursing

r_j_setser's review

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

This book destroyed my emotions and then repaired them as easy as one opens a door.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a deeply emotional coming-of-age novel with a splash of fantasy. While I can't say that it's an "enjoyable" read, it is definitely one that can play your emotions effortlessly and I have no choice by to give it five stars. The writing style is absolutely breathtaking, January is a unique and lovable main character who will always have you rooting for her, and the double time-line makes the plot very engaging. 

I never grew tired of the story or lost interest, but there were a few scenes where I had to step away and take a breath just because of the emotional intensity. This book got the closest to making me cry as any book has in a very long time. I will recommend it to anyone looking for a low fantasy, historical novel with a healthy dose of heartbreak and healing. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Racism, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Blood, and Classism

Minor: Cursing

Content warnings:

Mild cursing. No on-page spice (only a couple of kisses). There are heavy themes of racism and classism (true to historical records) and some mildly detailed self-harm scenes. The forced institutionalization scenes span through a couple chapters and can be difficult to read at times.

craftysnailtail's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.75

I can't get enough of Harrow's style of writing. Her metaphors and descriptions are like nothing I've encountered in writing before. Everything feels lyrical and alive. It's honestly difficult to move on after reading one of her books because it's like I have a book hangover, but in the worst way. I love the story and the characters, but what I can't move on from is Harrow herself. Her style almost ruins reading anything else after finishing a novel of hers.

Overall, I highly recommend this book just for Harrow's style alone, but it's also a fascinating plot with creative and well developed characters. Yes, it starts off rather slow, but that's extremely intentional. Yes, January feels frustratingly naive, but of course she is given her living situation. This book is all about adventure, imagination, and developing your own life's narrative. One of the top books I read all year and I recommend it to everyone!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Racism, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Racial slurs, Sexism, Slavery, Blood, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Death, Abandonment, and Alcohol

skbat's review against another edition

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Abandonment

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Racism, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Colonisation

Minor: Cursing, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

thequiltyreader's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? No

4.0

I really enjoyed this story. There are a number of back stories, while slow in places they tie nicely together in the end.

I loved the occasional exploration of using particular words, capitalisations and the general importance of words.

There are fleeting references to various other lands / worlds through the Doors and I would have loved it if these had been explored in some way.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

mariposa517's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense 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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Self harm, Blood, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and War

carbs4life's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

I enjoyed the Harrow’s prose. It had a way of sucking me into this story and it wraps up nicely. Ten Thousand Doors is full of adventure and romance across worlds. The romance is contained to journal entries which I found quite effective and does not distract from the main direction of the plot. 

It is an imaginative and interesting story. One that I found myself thinking about when I wasn’t reading. I believe I’ll keep this book on my mind for years imagining the world that Alix Harrow built. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment

Moderate: Racism and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Cursing, and Blood

meagangrace's review against another edition

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Blood

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Racism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Abandonment