Reviews tagging Cultural appropriation

When No One Is Watching, by Alyssa Cole

17 reviews

maregred's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, Death, Gaslighting, Classism, Grief, and Colonisation

Moderate: Alcohol, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Slavery, Medical trauma, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Blood

jojo_'s review against another edition

dark emotional tense 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Violence, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Racism, and Sexual content

Moderate: Blood, Grief, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Kidnapping, and Medical content

Minor: Genocide, Suicide, Alcohol, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Infidelity, and Slavery

stephaniezd's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

Gentrification meets The Purge!! This book had me on the edge of my seat the WHOLE time. I could not wait to see what would happen next, and let me tell you - I was not ready. Incredible story, incredible narrators, incredibly written. Thought-provoking. Just amazing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Blood, Death, Police brutality, Racism, Colonisation, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence

laguerrelewis's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

WHEEEEEEW. This book fucked me UP in the best way possible. Thrillers are an excellent medium to work through/depict/teach about the insidiousness of racism, and I’m glad that this trend is being picked up by intelligent and talented creators like Jordan Peele, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, and now Alyssa Cole. This book keeps you on the farthest edge of your seat, but also manages to inspire and warm your heart with a tale of communal aid and resistance. Cole writes characters and a community that are complex, storied, and palpable, adding to the stress when they are threatened by powers seemingly beyond their control. A read I would recommend for anyone looking for a cathartic, informative, and nervewracking take on gentrificaction.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Grief, Slavery, Sexual content, Death, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Police brutality, Blood, Cultural appropriation, Violence, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Racism, and Death of parent

madmantha's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective 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

One of the best books I’ve ever read, if not THE best. 
Thrilling, anxiety-inducing, emotional and yet hilarious at the same time. 

Can’t wait to suggest this read to others, I loaned it from the library but will definitely be purchasing my own copy. This is something that deserves to be remembered and celebrated for years to come. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, and Torture

Moderate: Abandonment, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, and Medical trauma

Minor: Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Homophobia, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Toxic friendship, Trafficking, Vomit, Alcohol, Addiction, Hate crime, Outing, Racial slurs, and Slavery

mysterymom46's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Racism, and Sexual content

Moderate: Murder, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Torture, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Injury/injury detail, Gaslighting, Grief, and Blood

Minor: Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Drug abuse, Cultural appropriation, and Drug use

Spoiler

bedbugs and a character scratching herself too much, leaving skin damage; on page sex scene

dcm7918's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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: Blood, Death, Drug use, Medical trauma, Addiction, Death of parent, Medical content, Gun violence, Infidelity, and Racism

Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, Classism, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Torture, and Sexual content

vasha's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

Were you watching when your neighborhood, or someone else's neighborhood, slipped away? If you get caught up in this tense novel, a thriller of gentrification, you can't look away, seeing through the eyes of Sydney who's losing her home and Theo who's seeing the destruction of what could be the home he's never had. It's a good thing this book is so well written, its characters are so likeable, and it has a happy ending (more or less); or its basis in reality could make it too grim. All the historical racism recounted in it actually happened; and the fictional events have real-world analogues, even the parts that may seem outlandish (

Spoiler

like the medical experimentation: Tuskeegee was long ago but the experimentation by US corporations in Africa was not, see  Unethical human experimentation - Wikipedia

). The one thing I didn't think so highly of was the way it goes from a creepy slow burn, with detailed setting, to the ending being an over-the-top action-movie cleanup of villains.

Spoiler

All the heads of a major corporation meeting in an abandoned hospital? Seriously?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Alcohol, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Murder, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, and Police brutality

Moderate: Physical abuse, Suicide, Vomit, and Blood

Minor: Addiction, Slavery, Cultural appropriation, and Genocide

taelights's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

Honestly I had such high hopes for this book so I'm very disappointed about rating this so low because this idea had so much potential but I thought a lot of it was wasted. While I love a murder mystery type thriller this was completely different with it focusing on gentrification and racism and real world problems so I was so hopeful and so disappointed when it fell flat. 

I loved the general concept and what we found out was going on was very interesting and fucked up. However, it took forever to get to that element of the book and nothing really seemed to happen until the later 75% of the book. There seemed to be way too much filler in this book and not enough of the payoff. In fact it felt like there wasn't a true conclusion to the book at all with it stopping abruptly and the epilogue leaving so many unanswered questions. 

Sydney I thought was underdeveloped and I hated Theo. His POV was always so annoying to read and I thought he was a major creep. Like he's always watching Sydney in the apartment across the street and getting boners for her and acting like a teenage boy going through puberty with how often he's getting horny for her and it's like dude.... Yet he's supposed to be seen in a good light and as like the only non racist and non threatening white person who moved in…. Yikes. Like sure he's not part of the overall group of bad guys but. The bar is in hell. 

The romance between Sydney and Theo was unbearable too. Like I hated them together and thought Theo didn't deserve her and her suddenly wanting him after treating him like a crap until they hooked up made the romance make zero sense. So much of the book is developing this boring gross romance though. Like I know now that this author is a romance author trying her hand at thrillers but my god this seemed like a romance with a side of a fucked up plan featuring gentrification and racism rather than an actual thriller. 

I didn't vibe with the writing style. I saw someone say it read like a YA and I kind of agree. The characters felt very immature and Theo's especially it felt like reading a teenager's POV. 

Overall this thriller really disappointed me and was lacking in so many areas. I have way more complaints about this book than praise unfortunately. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Police brutality, Racism, Suicide, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Sexual content, Stalking, Terminal illness, Violence, Addiction, Classism, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Medical trauma, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Slavery

Minor: Colonisation and Cultural appropriation

annibear_bookworm's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Bullying, Body shaming, Classism, Alcohol, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Violence