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solari's review
Im not sure which publisher looked at this and thought it should be printed. An interesting concept done so terribly poorly, the politics are handwaved in a book that should be stuffed to the brim. The characters are thin and poorly developed at best, the plot is bland, the magic and underlying racism just gave me a headache. It wasnt worth my time to finish even as a joke. I dont know if I should be more disappointed in the author or the publisher themselves for letting this see the light of day.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Violence, and War
The book is so poorly written I dont know if the racism is intentional or simply incedental.strawberrytheauthor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
This book was so much better than I could’ve imagined. I went into completely blind and fell in love! I am going to have a massive book hangover after.
I am only left with one question? How is the Sunra line going to continue if both siblings are gay? I mean yeah adoption but that could be a lot of political unrest.
This book in three words is Queer, Zombie, Betrayal. It has enemies, to friends, to lovers, to enemies, to lovers and just classic friends to lovers.
The writing is so wonderful my only critique is it uses the phrase “bile rose to her throat” and others like that far too many times. Other than that it had so many fabulous quotes that just hit you to your core, my favorite being, “You useless lesbian.”
I am only left with one question? How is the Sunra line going to continue if both siblings are gay? I mean yeah adoption but that could be a lot of political unrest.
This book in three words is Queer, Zombie, Betrayal. It has enemies, to friends, to lovers, to enemies, to lovers and just classic friends to lovers.
The writing is so wonderful my only critique is it uses the phrase “bile rose to her throat” and others like that far too many times. Other than that it had so many fabulous quotes that just hit you to your core, my favorite being, “You useless lesbian.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, and Medical content
Minor: Cannibalism
theferret's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and War
Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
oliverreeds's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
alright! lets get into the complicated mess of this book. when i first started it mmm. one day ago i had no idea abt the controversy until by chance i looked at the reviews and saw RACISM and ANTISEMITISM. i said hmm. that does not sound very good and look up what was happening but found very few examples online of anything so i turned to the comments section just to know what i was getting into. when reading abt the reverse racism i was a bit skeptical, but i saw someone explaining how, while in-world race isnt a social factor, the only bipoc characters are the same — the ruling class who are delightfully ignorant of whats happening in their city and have to be informed by an oppressed white woman. now i personally am not 100% this wasnt a misguided attempt at showing unjust government and how marginalized social groups get fucked over by the system but… why then were these two the like only bipoc characters? we couldnt have had an oppressed witch bipoc?? for some reason the answer is no.
SPOILERS BELOW
now lets get onto the antisemitism which i consider the more blatant issue. so there is a character who is reptilian in nature — hidden actually as his reptilian self — who left his reptilian homeland because they were creating biological warfare inoculations against the lower class of witches… now. wow. thats already a lot to process. and to those of you who know things abt conspiracy theories, you know that they all basically end in antisemitism including the “secret reptilians are ruling the government” shabang. so. this subplot feels like a CRAZY blatant dog whistle to these conspiracy theories. now you might be saying well HE was a good character who changed for the better, and i would say yes. hes quite well-rounded but. the implication in this book is that he betrayed ALL of his people. that he is the ONLY one who realized what they were doing was wrong. which to me,,, again makes me think hmm. that seems a little coded.
SPOILERS ENDED
now lets say this wasnt all on purpose. how should we react? well, first off we need to hold the author accountable. say hey, this is kinda fucked will you make a statement my guy? but MORE importantly we need to call out the publishing firm for a) not hiring sensitivity readers or b) not hiring very good sensitivity readers.
aside from that crazy shit this book was a good debut. the characters were compelling, the plot was interesting, but the message was insanely heavy handed which was a little frustrating.
anyway, rating zero stars for racist shit and antisemitic nonsense that could have easily been avoided
SPOILERS BELOW
now lets get onto the antisemitism which i consider the more blatant issue. so there is a character who is reptilian in nature — hidden actually as his reptilian self — who left his reptilian homeland because they were creating biological warfare inoculations against the lower class of witches… now. wow. thats already a lot to process. and to those of you who know things abt conspiracy theories, you know that they all basically end in antisemitism including the “secret reptilians are ruling the government” shabang. so. this subplot feels like a CRAZY blatant dog whistle to these conspiracy theories. now you might be saying well HE was a good character who changed for the better, and i would say yes. hes quite well-rounded but. the implication in this book is that he betrayed ALL of his people. that he is the ONLY one who realized what they were doing was wrong. which to me,,, again makes me think hmm. that seems a little coded.
SPOILERS ENDED
now lets say this wasnt all on purpose. how should we react? well, first off we need to hold the author accountable. say hey, this is kinda fucked will you make a statement my guy? but MORE importantly we need to call out the publishing firm for a) not hiring sensitivity readers or b) not hiring very good sensitivity readers.
aside from that crazy shit this book was a good debut. the characters were compelling, the plot was interesting, but the message was insanely heavy handed which was a little frustrating.
anyway, rating zero stars for racist shit and antisemitic nonsense that could have easily been avoided
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
bahgl's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit and War
katiethepenguin's review
adventurous
dark
funny
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
This is the best fantasy book I've read in a while! It was my most anticipated read for 2023. The writing is powerful. The plot is an adventure. The characters are lovable and have distinct personalities. It's a sapphic enemies to lovers dark fantasy. An all around chef's kiss. I'll definitely read this again and have already recommended. If you like looking for Easter eggs, there are some good references to Avatar: The Last Air Bender and Taylor Swift.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
pidgepodge's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty
lilacsophie's review against another edition
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, and War
Moderate: Torture, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
snowwhitehatesapples's review
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Review can also be found at Snow White Hates Apples.
I got this ARC before the whole issue with potential racism, reverse racism and “black royal siblings oppressing poor white people” erupted, and because I’m trying to be someone who will try things out first before passing judgement, I decided to read this anyway despite my wariness.
Now, that I’m done, I’m on the side of those who label this book as not reverse racist specifically of “black people oppressing whites” as I’ve seen in many reviews and comments).
Why?
To begin, here’s the definition of reverse racism:
“Reverse racism, sometimes referred to as reverse discrimination, is the concept that affirmative action and similar color-conscious programs for redressing racial inequality are a form of anti-white racism.” – Wikipedia
As a Malaysian, the forms of racism I’ve witnessed and experienced are tied to the races within my own country. In this case, it’s slurs, the “go back to ____ country”, the prejudice and stereotypes against ethnicities. Racial discrimination is even embodied within the policies here. I don’t know much about what racism is like outside my country, but I’ve seen the horrors done to POC by white people on the internet. The shoot first, ask questions later. The instant prejudice and wariness against a POC, etc.
With the above in mind, nothing in this book can be specifically labelled as anti-white or anti-any colour. Yes, the main character is pale and yes, the siblings who are to rule the country are dark-skinned but there is no majority race on either side. The third member of the royal sibling’s entourage is, in fact, “dark haired and dark eyed” with pale skin (page 30). On the other hand, the witches are divided into a few covens and in the case of the Skra, “the only difference was their hands; on brown and pale fingers alike, their fingernails ranged from deep gray to the barest tint” (Page 10).
On the other hand, the siblings’ parents are a witch mother with dark skin (page 120) and their father a pale human (page 87). Their father figure after the death of their parents is a pale human with red hair (page 105). Skin tone and hair colour are, refreshingly, not constantly mentioned in this book. Moreover, to say this book is reverse racist because black rulers are oppressing poor white people would be incorrect too. The black people don’t make any ruling decisions throughout the book. The cut-off trade, the poaching, etc, are done by others (some of the notable leaders of these opposing parties are pale). The only time the siblings do make a ruling decision, it was to unite the people in the end.
Rather, if anything is to be deemed as racism in any way here, then it’d be the dislike of witches toward humans and the dislike of humans toward witches because that’s what fuels the unrest between the people in the book. ‘Monsters VS humans’ is the primary, constant focus here and we see it both externally through the conflict between humans and witches, and internally through Ranka as she struggles with the perception of what a monster (that is, what she views herself to be) truly is. What enriches this exploration of the theme is the diverse characters within a diverse social system, making The Ones We Burn a well-written debut novel.
My only issue with the book is how long it is as the story felt like it was being dragged on in the middle. Nevertheless, I do appreciate how carefully crafted the story is. If you’re a fan of the complexities related to the theme of ‘monsters VS humans’, and if you’re interested in a book where skin tones are minimally, passively focused on, The Ones We Burn is a book you should try reading.
PS: If I come off as ignorant at any moment, then I’m really sorry for that 🙇♂️🙏🏻 (Also ngl, writing all this here is terrifying as I don’t want to accidentally offend anyone, but I also want to be honest.)
I got this ARC before the whole issue with potential racism, reverse racism and “black royal siblings oppressing poor white people” erupted, and because I’m trying to be someone who will try things out first before passing judgement, I decided to read this anyway despite my wariness.
Now, that I’m done, I’m on the side of those who label this book as not reverse racist specifically of “black people oppressing whites” as I’ve seen in many reviews and comments).
Why?
To begin, here’s the definition of reverse racism:
“Reverse racism, sometimes referred to as reverse discrimination, is the concept that affirmative action and similar color-conscious programs for redressing racial inequality are a form of anti-white racism.” – Wikipedia
As a Malaysian, the forms of racism I’ve witnessed and experienced are tied to the races within my own country. In this case, it’s slurs, the “go back to ____ country”, the prejudice and stereotypes against ethnicities. Racial discrimination is even embodied within the policies here. I don’t know much about what racism is like outside my country, but I’ve seen the horrors done to POC by white people on the internet. The shoot first, ask questions later. The instant prejudice and wariness against a POC, etc.
With the above in mind, nothing in this book can be specifically labelled as anti-white or anti-any colour. Yes, the main character is pale and yes, the siblings who are to rule the country are dark-skinned but there is no majority race on either side. The third member of the royal sibling’s entourage is, in fact, “dark haired and dark eyed” with pale skin (page 30). On the other hand, the witches are divided into a few covens and in the case of the Skra, “the only difference was their hands; on brown and pale fingers alike, their fingernails ranged from deep gray to the barest tint” (Page 10).
On the other hand, the siblings’ parents are a witch mother with dark skin (page 120) and their father a pale human (page 87). Their father figure after the death of their parents is a pale human with red hair (page 105). Skin tone and hair colour are, refreshingly, not constantly mentioned in this book. Moreover, to say this book is reverse racist because black rulers are oppressing poor white people would be incorrect too. The black people don’t make any ruling decisions throughout the book. The cut-off trade, the poaching, etc, are done by others (some of the notable leaders of these opposing parties are pale). The only time the siblings do make a ruling decision, it was to unite the people in the end.
Rather, if anything is to be deemed as racism in any way here, then it’d be the dislike of witches toward humans and the dislike of humans toward witches because that’s what fuels the unrest between the people in the book. ‘Monsters VS humans’ is the primary, constant focus here and we see it both externally through the conflict between humans and witches, and internally through Ranka as she struggles with the perception of what a monster (that is, what she views herself to be) truly is. What enriches this exploration of the theme is the diverse characters within a diverse social system, making The Ones We Burn a well-written debut novel.
My only issue with the book is how long it is as the story felt like it was being dragged on in the middle. Nevertheless, I do appreciate how carefully crafted the story is. If you’re a fan of the complexities related to the theme of ‘monsters VS humans’, and if you’re interested in a book where skin tones are minimally, passively focused on, The Ones We Burn is a book you should try reading.
PS: If I come off as ignorant at any moment, then I’m really sorry for that 🙇♂️🙏🏻 (Also ngl, writing all this here is terrifying as I don’t want to accidentally offend anyone, but I also want to be honest.)
Thank you so much Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and War