dommymartinez's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual assault, Incest, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Police brutality, Blood, Cursing, Mass/school shootings, Classism, Violence, Abortion, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction and Drug use
Minor: Racism and Racial slurs
lottiegasp's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Rape
Moderate: War, Violence, Incest, Police brutality, and Pedophilia
laedyred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Sexual violence, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Infidelity, Incest, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Physical abuse
mightyoscura's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Suicide, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Death of parent, Death, Car accident, Slavery, Sexual violence, Rape, Police brutality, Lesbophobia, Infidelity, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Body horror, Self harm, Violence, Torture, Misogyny, Medical content, Gaslighting, Deportation, Classism, Child death, Blood, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, War, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Grief, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Colonisation, Abortion, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Sexism, Racism, Physical abuse, and Mental illness
ednareads's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Rape, War, and Sexism
Moderate: Incest and Torture
Minor: Homophobia
anahisa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
now, I experienced such a disconnect with this book largely in part because of its characters. they were flawed and real, true! also true is that I did not care for a single one of them!! for a family drama spanning multiple generations, very few of the emotional beats landed for me (đ¤¨đđ) sadly.
in a shocking turn of events, I was drawn more towards the politics + history that informed the background of this saga. the novelâs attention to womenâs rights, unionization, revolution, and the westâs presence in foreign governments were its saving grace for me.Â
and one thing this book tackles brilliantly is the violence of men + power. so so so many terrible ways in which these individuals + institutions possess, demean, and violate others. while earlier I mentioned that many of the storyâs emotional beats were a miss for me, it never failed to make me absolutely livid! the anger I felt when reading some of these scenes! every man in my line of sight should be afraid! rage enough to burn the world I think!!!
Graphic: Death and Rape
Moderate: Incest, Car accident, War, Physical abuse, Violence, Domestic abuse, Classism, Sexual assault, Torture, and Sexual violence
Minor: Abortion, Xenophobia, and Drug use
smuds2's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: War, Torture, Murder, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Death, Sexism, Self harm, Miscarriage, Incest, Child death, Child abuse, Addiction, Violence, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Racism, Police brutality, Pedophilia, Medical content, Rape, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Classism, Animal cruelty, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Animal death, and Abortion
notallbooks_mp's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Colonisation, Death, Animal death, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Ableism, Classism, Drug abuse, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Incest, Mass/school shootings, Abortion, Infidelity, and Gaslighting
deniseh's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Confinement, Abortion, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Slavery, Genocide, Incest, Colonisation, Cursing, and Vomit
summermorning's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I think the prose and writing was good. I loved the magical realism aspects, I loved the historical fiction aspect, and the idea of tracing a family through that tumultuous period and all that led up to it. I even really liked the way the story wasn't told entirely chronologically, and I got over the weird switch between first and third person narrative just fine.Â
That being said, after I started reading this, I was really shocked it wasn't a male author. The gratuitous, excessive sexual violence was insane. I understand that she is trying to illustrate how powerless women, both upper and lower class, were at the time, but at points, it just seems way too much and unnecessarily descriptive for the purposes of narrative.
My biggest complaint is that this book is heralded for its strong female characters. Who? Where? Literally all the women never do anything but get abused until maybe the last 30 pages or so, and even then, Alba's biggest contribution seems to be to suffer nobly. All the big revolutionary players who accomplish things, or even try to, are men. And the women exist to love them, get in their way (@Miguel), or suffer for them. Clara has magical powers and was raised by, at least for the time, decently liberal people. Yet she marries someone she doesn't love, puts up with his abuse, and even forgives him. I fail to believe the only revolutionaries in Chile were male, and all the women could do were sing in concentration camps and survive.Â
I also felt like the second half of the book fell flat with the magical realism. Had it been to illustrate the realistic suffering of the war, or to highlight the modern age, that would have worked. But instead it was sort of thrown in willy nilly just enough to ruin that idea, but not enough to make it feel connected.Â
Honestly, some of this might even have been okay reading if not for the fact that not a single character was redeemable and literally nothing good happens except for maybe 20 pages in the middle of the book. I understand a tragedy, but honestly, this book was too long for almost no highs and only lows. It makes the tragedy drudgery and torture for the reader rather than powerful and poignant with nothing good to contrast it with.Â
This book was not at all what it has been heralded as, and I was really disappointed with it.
Graphic: Incest, Rape, Torture, Racism, War, Death, Gore, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse