Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Ciudad de Jade by Fonda Lee

29 reviews

iono's review against another edition

adventurous dark fast-paced

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

2.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, War, and Classism

Minor: Body horror, Cursing, Homophobia, Rape, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Gun violence, Sexual content, Dementia, Grief, and War

Minor: Addiction, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Suicide, and Colonisation

jennireadsmaybe'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

I don't read a ton of adult fantasy; however, Jade City is such an interesting start to a fantasy series. It's not a favorite by any means, but I am very invested in what will happen next. Fonda Lee is phenomenal at world building. Every detail from the smallest to the biggest creates an atmosphere that is impossible not to be trapped in for a long time after putting the book down. 

I liked getting glimpses at all three of the siblings, because they're all so different but trapped in this mafia like environment. Each of their personalities were distinct. Even the lesser(?) members of the Kaul and Ayt families were intriguing. Lee really captured the mafia/mob at each turn from the violent attacks to the political upheaval. I'm excited to find out what happens next for both families. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, and Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Suicide

mads_reads_books's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

chrisb913's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Fonda Lee knocked it out of the park with this first book of the series. We follow the Kaul family who are the leaders of the No Peak clan in Janloon. Lee does a fantastic job mixing western mafia movie styles with asian inspired Yakuza gangs, a whole lot of martial arts, and a magic system that is incredibly unique and intriguing. The book follows the 3 siblings of the Kaul family, their "cousin" Anden, and the most hated character ever of Bero (read it to find out) as they try to survive life in Janloon as events surrounding them push everything head first into a gang war with the Mountain clan. The character development was splendid. The magic system was so well thought out and the world building was chef's kiss. This is a definite recommend for anyone that is a fan of the godfather series and I cannot wait for more.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, and War

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, and Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Suicide

pri_lakshmi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, and War

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, and Colonisation

lonelylooper's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Suicide

nice_frogboy'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

4.5

this gets described as an urban fantasy series, but it's more of an eclectic genre bend, like if the Godfather was about the triads and was set on a post-colonial island that is sort of, but not exactly, a riff on Hong Kong. the characters are charming, but really it is the worldbuilding and thematic content that stood out to me. this series has a lot to say - about power and the responsibilities of people who wield it, about colonialism and the clash between the old and the new, and about family and what family means when you're born into an organized crime syndicate. it also poses the question, how much detail is too much detail when you're writing a sex scene (the answer? when you write the words, "she cupped her hands directly around his scrotum." that's too much)

anyway, much of that stuff is still sitting with me now, and if any of that sounds like it's of interest, i highly recommend you check this series out.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia

rubybastille's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

Epic, beautiful, incredible. Elements of anime, 80s Hong Kong action flicks, and Eastern religion blended expertly with The Godfather. For a story where I didn't necessarily like or approve of all the leads (Hilo is charismatic and brave, but short-tempered and lowkey sexist), it certainly kept my attention in a way I didn't expect. I'd say this is a slow-burn, chess game of a book for someone comfortable with nuanced, sometimes unlikable protagonists.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Blood, Murder, and War

Minor: Homophobia

daydream_e's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.75

Amazing characters who are deeply flawed and yet so easy to care about. Excellent portrayal of civil war and the complexities of post-colonial development, as well as international politics - I’m  considering recommending this to my undergraduate comparative politics students as an enjoyable way to consider how natural resources, colonial history, corruption and crime, and international politics interact. Particularly given the author has no academic history/polisci background, it’s incredibly impressive that she was able to create a fictional world with such realistic politics, and it speaks to what must be an incredible grasp of colonial and post-colonial Asian history. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Chronic illness, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Xenophobia, Dementia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Colonisation, and War

Minor: Homophobia

Racism, xenophobia, war, and colonization are within the context of a fictional country with obvious real world analogues, but not one-to-one with real life events. Mental illness and drug use/addiction are also within the context of a fictional drug. Violence and injury is often very explicit - think hard R rated action movie - but not dwelled on excessively. Grief is a major theme throughout the book for many characters BIG SPOILER:

including the death of a POV character