Reviews tagging 'Death'

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

78 reviews

3littlewordz's review against another edition

mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

I thought this would be...good. This book was my introduction to Octavia Butler and I read it to fulfill a prompt for a reading challenge I'm participating in. I have read so many glowing reviews for Butler's books, and maybe I should have started with Parable of the Sower or Kindred, because Fledgling fell incredibly flat for me. I had high hopes in the beginning for a suspenseful thriller that scared me just a bit. I got none of that, but got a lot of Ina history, "dispelling" vampire myth, and a bit of discomfort at the imagery of a childlike vampire sexually involved with human adults. Far too much of the later chapters were spent describing the Ina families. I wanted this to be so so much better. I am now hoping Parable of the Sower will not disappoint me as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Violence

risaleel's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

Moderate: Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Mass/school shootings, and War

Minor: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Incest, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

halfbloodprincess_hogwarts's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense 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

This is the first book I have ever read by Octavia E. Butler and I am over the MOON happy after reading this.

The MC is a Black Vampire whom is desirable, courageous, brave, unforgettable and a refreshing character. She wakes up in a cave in excruciating pain with no memory of what happened to her nor who she is. We come to know the world through her eyes and who she is as the story progresses. Along with help from those on the way.

I did mentally clutch my metaphoric pearls (especially while driving) listening to the audiobook. This is definitely more for mature audiences. It's so difficult to express my love for this novel without dumping spoilers. Just impossible.

Found family, my favorite trope, plays a major role in Fledgling and I could 100% relisten to this again and again.    

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

brynalexa's review against another edition

emotional sad tense fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gun violence, Racism, Blood, Grief, and Death of parent

taroroot's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

3.0

i don't read much vampire or sci-fi stuff but i like Octavia Butler so i read this. i enjoyed her unique take on vampires. the apparent age of the main character is difficult to accept and uncomfortable to deal with in many parts of the book. Shori is placed in a lot of sexual contexts while appearing as a 10 year old child (idc if she's really 53,

she's still considered a child by her own peoples' standards

) i'm sure this was intentional on the behalf of the author however i really struggled with not thinking of every character as a perv.

Wright is lesbophobic as fuck for saying that Shori's relationships with women didn't affect him as much but when she gets a male symbiont suddenly polyamory is a big deal.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Lesbophobia

islandbookwyrm's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death

moonlitemuseum'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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Fledgling is unflinching. Sometimes it feels like it might be a mercy to forget the reality within the book, not least its main character's incredibly young-looking body, but Butler never relents. You will see everything. You will learn about the strange, almost human nature of Butler's vampires and accept them. And in spite of yourself, you will enjoy it.
There were some moments I felt uncomfortable and disturbed, but they made the tale all the more satisfying when it reached its end. The characters that form Shori's unlikely pack have strong voices and interesting bonds, and the vampires—the Ina—are fascinating, thoroughly convinced of their own moral purity in a way that feels all too resonant many years on. A great book that would have made a great series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Shori is actually much older than many of the adult men she "couples" with but has a child's body. This is framed as horror, and is very effective!

mwass's review

adventurous dark 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? No

5.0

I love how Butler explores morally grey relationships and uses the reader’s uncomfortablity as a tool to do so! She effortlessly builds a fleshed out believable world that sucks you in, while also tackling issues such as racism and consent.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual content

sweetdee27's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Racism, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Classism

libristella's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail