Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb

35 reviews

moth_mcgangis's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.25

Going off of the blurb on the back of the book and the first few reviews, I expected this to be a lighthearted pirate romp. Oh how naïve I was.

Ship of Magic is a sadistic sad-fest of a novel, and as much as I adored Hobb's prose, character development, and vivid descriptions, I don't feel like I can justify rating this book any higher because of that. The author starts by showing you an array of likable characters, then spends the rest of the book putting them through hell again and again and again and again and again.

No good deed goes unpunished in this novel. The likeable characters are beaten and forced to submit while the worst, most hateable characters always get their way.  After the first quarter of the book, this pattern is frustrating. Halfway through it is tiresome. And three-quarters of the way I was starved for any sense of justice for the characters I had grown to care for so much, but I never really got it in a justifiably satisfying way. 800 pages is a long time to go without seeing anything good happen to the characters you love, and I just came out of it feeling depressed. 

But as much psychological distress as this book caused me... goddammit, I can't possibly rate it lower because all of the characters are so compelling and my desire to see things work out for them (or for some, to see them held responsible for their actions) is overwhelming. Not to mention it is the first book I've read in recent memory to make me cry (poor Paragon...) I will definitely be reading the other two at some point, but not for a while.

In summary, if you are up for a sad novel with infuriating antagonists and very little hope, you will probably love this book. But if you are expecting something cozy and fun like I was, look elsewhere, or you will get strung along on a ride of beautifully written, but seemingly endless misery.

EDIT:

I HAVE DISCOVERD THAT YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO READ THIS BEFORE READING THE FARSEER TRILOGY. DON'T DO WHAT I DID! READ FARSEER FIRST!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, and Slavery

readwithbells's review against another edition

4.0

I give this a tentative four stars. I love (and hate) the characters of this book, I am incredibly invested in their lives and relationships. Hobb transitions well into the third person POV and the world she creates is expansive and devastating and real. I don’t think I have ever viciously hated a character as much as I hate Kyle. The depiction of domestic violence is difficult but well done, as is the depiction of how women slowly lose their power in an oppressive place. It reads like a punch in the gut, hard to escape into so be aware of that going into it, but it’s a good story. 

That being said. A primary focus of this book is slavery, specifically the slave trade on ships. While I do think Hobb did her research and had good intentions, I also take issue with a white woman writing so extensively on slavery. It’s just a little icky?? And very hard for me to put into words. I think this book would have been just as good, if not better, without slavery as a plot device. I think it’s done tastefully, truly. But it gives me the ick and that’s a real bummer because I want to love these books and I am weirdly conflicted in my feelings for them. These are older books and I can acknowledge that Hobb was likely bringing attention to something not a lot of other authors were talking about, but at the same time it gives me an uncomfortable feeling. So. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, and Slavery

Moderate: Sexual assault, Blood, and Vomit

lunafrmoon's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Bullying, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Excrement

philineselavy's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Drug use

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child death, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Kidnapping, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Ableism, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Excrement, and War

Needles (tattooing). Illness, unsanitary. Hunting and skinning. Slut shaming, discrimination against sex workers (frequent use of "whore"). Sexual/romantic relationships between pre-teen/teenage girls and adult men, with some victim blaming attitudes toward this. Forced abortion, stillbirth.

kaziaroo's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Excrement, and Vomit

Multiple graphic limb amputations

natalie_davies's review against another edition

4.75

What with the web of names, places and plotlines to keep up with - not to mention the glacial pace - it took me a while to get into this. But I was rewarded with some of the best character work I've ever read! The "villains" are all really fun to hate, the underdogs (Especially Wintrow and Althea) are absolutely put upon, and even characters I found annoying (I'm looking at you Malta) got more interesting towards the end. 

I'm really looking forward to picking up the next in the trilogy now, even though this one took me nearly a month to get through. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Drug use, Rape, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, and Sexual content

Minor: Miscarriage and Torture

bluejay21's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Slavery

Moderate: Death, Drug use, Sexual content, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

wolfthorn's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense slow-paced

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

2.5

It's taken me 19 days, but I've finally finished this book. All 897 pages of it. It wouldn't have taken me so long if I'd not switched to reading something else part-way through! I am rather glad to be done with it, it is so incredibly grim. The entire book is full of misfortune and there's only one truly happy moment that I can think of. There are so many irritating characters, even the main two - Althea and Wintrop - are annoying. I think possibly the Vivacia is about the best character in the whole book. But the most infuriating bit was the fact that the book just stopped. It didn't finish with some parts of the storyline resolved, no, it just ended. Grrr. I don't know if I will read the second book. Part of me wants to see Althea get her ship and Kyle get the comeuppance he truly deserves, but I don't know if I can deal with any more misery. Especially not another 850 pages of it.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Drug use, and Death of parent

Minor: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Excrement, and Alcohol

genny's review against another edition

adventurous emotional slow-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

4.5

This was so good. I knew going in that the Liveship Traders trilogy is very well-loved, so I had high expectations. Hobb did not disappoint (this was my first book by her!). The worldbuilding is there and you can see the overarching plot forming nicely, but the character work is where this book really shines. Every conversation is gripping and there wasn't a POV that I didn't enjoy (except maybe for the serpents, but those chapters were short and I'm sure they're important, haha). Yes, some of the characters were incredibly frustrating (Malta!! Kyle, the bane of my existence!) but I was still invested in where the story would take them. All I want is to protect Wintrow! 😩

It was daunting to pick up an 800+ page book but the length truly is justified. I'm eager to continue with the next book as there was no resolution at all here - the threads of the protagonists' fates just begin to connect towards the end. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Trafficking

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape and Sexual assault