Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo

18 reviews

iris_lrf's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

Rarely am I disappointed by the Grishaverse and this is no exception. Bardrugo's magnificent talent for worldbuilding is exhibited full force in all six of these stories, each a deliciously dark twist on a classic fairytale. Her characters had me gripping the book, my nose barely an inch from the page, as I read on in disbelief, in worry, in vindication. 

To speak of this book without praising Sara Kipin's glorious illustrations would be a crime of the highest order. With every turn of the page, the margins bloom with colour, coming further and further to life. I would often catch myself skipping ahead for a glimpse of the final picture, only held back by the spoilers it would contain. Kipin's bright and bold work brings these stories, their characters and the setting to a new level. 

Whether you're new to the Grishaverse or long-time fan, this book is a must-read for all. Its beautiful pages and enthralling tales shed spectacular light on a world of powerful sorcerers and terrible monsters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Self harm, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Blood, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Bullying, Infidelity, and Classism

alixbx's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

If you are a Grishaverse lover, nothing in here will be more shocking than what you have already read in the other books. If you’re not as familiar with the works of Leigh Bardugo, I would advise greatly that you review content warnings. Grishaverse books may be Young Adult reading, but I would strongly argue it is not, and I feel similarly here with this text. It is beautifully written an illustrated with stories that do not offer happy endings. I find this to actually be it’s greatest strength, but it is entirely preference. As an anthology, it is not necessarily curated with a single vision or message. More than anything it offers lore that shapes the greater Grishaverse. If you enjoy Grimm Fairytales and Poe, you could enjoy this in isolation from the entirety of the series. It is in that same arena for vibes and style.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Details will be graphic and intense and they will come without warning. This is definitely the kind of read you should be feeling mentally strong when reading, and weary of if any of the content warnings upset you because they will not be alluded to - they will be described viscerally.

kristins3's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

I’m usually skeptical of in-universe tales for existing series, but this was so good. I particularly loved the attribution of each tale to different countries and the incorporation of themes or even outright stories that exist in our own world

I had the hardest time following the Kerch nutcracker story so that was probably my least favorite, but I did like the creepy ending even if it had some scary similarities to ghost stories about haunted dolls that we’d hear as kids

I love the Wicked treatment of Ursula. The daughter is still innocent so she’s not justified in her implied actions in the little mermaid and thus doesn’t get a full Wicked redemption but it adds a cool set of motives for the character. At first I was thinking it was odd that the prudish fjerdans would tell stories with such promiscuous characters but then I realized the mermaids are the villains so that’s actually probably consistent lol

I think starting with Amaya’s story was a great choice, especially as it set the tone for altered story telling throughout. This was probably one of my favorites

The imagery in the fox story was probably the hardest for me to stomach, but I did like the profession of the story overall

I also really enjoyed Little Knife, and since it’s only a folktale I guess it doesn’t necessarily mean something for the sentience of bodies of water in the universe and it still works with the rest of it

It’s so interesting that Leigh Bardugo was able to construct such a complex world and inject so much into it. I feel like the storyline of the Shadow and Bone series was really holding back this amazing world building (though it remains my favorite part of that series) and it really came to fruition in later books like Six of Crows

Also incredible illustrations! I loved the progressive images in the margins and the final picture at the end of each story

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Violence

Minor: Child abuse

albyalbyalby'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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

 Leigh Bardugo never disappoints with the Grishaverse, and the delightful and subversive takes on classic fairytales she gives in this book are underrated by her fans. The stunning descriptions give wonderful visuals that any reader will enjoy. Not to mention the beautiful illustrations throughout. Overall, highly recommend! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Incest, Sexual assault, and Blood

Minor: Bullying, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, and War

tropico98's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing tense fast-paced

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

5.0

One of my favourite 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and War

rafacolog's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Blood, and Murder

rory18's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

A masterfully crafted collection of dark yet inspiring cautionary tales. There's no unreality trigger warning, but if there was one it would certainly apply for The Soldier Prince (heavy themes of grooming in that one, too.)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, and Cannibalism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Child death, Homophobia, Alcohol, and War

casdelvo's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Toxic relationship

Minor: Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, and Alcohol

wrinnola's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Abandonment

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Self harm, Gaslighting, and Classism

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent

peggy_racham's review against another edition

4.5

Six childrens stories that the grishaverse characters probably grew up hearing. They were all unique, interesting and diferent even when taking inspiration from some of our stories. 
(TWs are mostly of page and mention only, but these are stories similar to grimm original)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury