Reviews tagging 'Rape'

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

123 reviews

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, and Abandonment

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Infertility, Rape, Torture, Medical content, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

Minor: Child death, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Racism, Vomit, Trafficking, and Acephobia/Arophobia

crabs_with_sticks's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Cannibalism, and Murder

msgslibrary's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This book was a marvelous piece of writing, able to carry a story in a non-linear style chapter by chapter to slowly peel back the layers of the main character's life. I was worried I wouldn't like it at first because the opening chapter makes it seem like the main character's primary personality trait is being an alcoholic, but that thankfully isn't focused on with the same intensity for the rest of the book. If that's of concern, get past the first chapter and the story will get better from there. The worldbuilding that Dean is able to weave throughout the story is masterful, even though there are holes. In fact, the holes that are left make it all the more interesting. Our own history as a species is full of mystery and unanswered questions the further back in time we try to study, and the Book Eaters of this book are no different. This, paired with the rigidity of the social structures the Book Eaters live under, makes for a wholly enjoyable read with enough lore to not get bogged down. And if you love a feral woman/lesbian main character, Devon, this book's lead, is for you! There is also an underlying metaphor of disability rights and how to navigate the world as an autistic/neurodivergent person, at least through my reading, that Dean works in so subtly and fluidly that is moves but doesn't overstate itself. Wile extremely gory and dark at points, by the end this book was a breath of fresh air for a sci-fi/fantasy lover like me who loves seeing unique ideas in the genre executed well!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury

happy ending

esme_may's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Gun violence, Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Homophobia, Incest, and Trafficking

mew415's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Violence, and Murder

arejaytay's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Misogyny, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Torture

assembledbats's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Alcohol

tinyjude's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad fast-paced

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

4.0

Very intriguing concept and development. I liked how it perfectly encapsulated the patriarchal, oppressive and cruel world created by the Families and the damage they create to all those poor little girls by just feeding them fairy tales and not preparing them for what's to come. I liked Devon's fierce personality and the characters' grey morality portrayed through the things she is forced to do for Cai and what Cai has to suffer too. I liked that it was sapphic and we also got a tiny bit of asexual representation and some decent men amongst monsters. It is true that the ending and love plot felt rushed but I liked the approach and the points the author wanted to criticize and how they were addressed in the book unequivocally. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Blood, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Drug use, Incest, Infertility, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Fire/Fire injury

auroramw's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

1.5

I love the book's premise, but it fell short in my opinion. The story is as subtle as a sledgehammer. There's a lot of pacing issues, especially towards the end of the book. Despite all this, I find that the bigges problem for me is how under developed the characters feel. The dialogue feels like a poorly written script where no one has a distinct voice. The characters lack personality which made them deeply unlikable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, and Pregnancy

cakrolik's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Trafficking