Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

23 reviews

55vre55's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious 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

5.0

I have wanted to read this book for a long time, and I am so glad that I finally did, even though it wasn't exactly what I expected. The world-building and characterizations and magic all felt so real throughout! I absolutely loved the way all of the different story lines following all of the different characters eventually wove together into a very dramatic but ultimately hopeful ending. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Violence

Minor: Miscarriage, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, and Classism

tkaryn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

A thrilling adventure that spans hundreds of years and many countries, cultures and languages. It's a tale about the lives we touch and the impacts we have. How being true to your nature is not always a good thing, and we should all aspire to personal growth. Recommended by a coworker, and this book did not disappoint. The audiobook was wonderful and captivating. A solid 5 stars

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence

melsbarker's review against another edition

adventurous reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence

kermittuesday's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

3.0

It was good but I don’t think I liked it enough to read the sequel. I’m okay with the story ending where it did. 

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

abeplaut's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

4.0

Certain bits of mythology and folklore were invented to tell this story. One small complaint is the inclusion of a “name changed at Ellis Island” sort of scene. This is a common myth among many Jewish American families that names were changed during immigration proceedings. The truth is that people petitioned the state of NY to change names after the fact. That one detail was a distraction from an otherwise exciting story set in 19th century NYC at the convergence of Yiddish/Ashkenazi Jewish and Syrian and Arab folklore. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Violence, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

nessynoname's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective slow-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

There is no getting around the fact that this book is incredibly slow. Part of that comes from an abundance of detail in the writing style and careful introspection of each character. But if you are patient with the narrative you will find an incredibly rich and meticulously plotted story that wraps itself up into a neat and elegant bow by the end. 
I am not incredibly into the historical genre but this story plays to several of my specific interests. I very much enjoyed learning about the not-oft utilized myth creatures of golems and jinn and appreciated how thoroughly grounded in cultural contexts the author aspires to present them. The author seems to take great care giving detail to the Jewish and Syrian communities, both New and Old World, featured in the story, and every character is unique and grounded. I also deeply appreciate that main characters Ahmad and Chava, while not exactly being *not* romantically interested in each other, have factors to their relationship outside of romantic intrigue and are allowed to organically come to value and enjoy each other's company rather than being smashed together out of obligation of being the male and female leads. In closing, this is a lovingly and meticulously crafted book. Slow as it is, I would not begrudge someone being impatient with it but I greatly appreciated my time with it. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Miscarriage, Suicide attempt, and Murder

Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, Violence, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Drug use, Sexual content, Cultural appropriation, Sexual harassment, and Classism

stephanelli's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Violence, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy

queerloras's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

5.0

Absolutely spectacular. Fucking brilliant. That's it.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Minor: Drug use

ska1224's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective relaxing 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexism

Minor: Infertility, Racism, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry

lanid's review against another edition

adventurous

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Violence, and Suicide attempt