Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Mountains Sing, by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

26 reviews

beca's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Abandonment, War, Colonisation, and Grief

Moderate: Genocide, Terminal illness, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Blood, Death of parent, Addiction, Sexual harassment, and Murder

Minor: Torture and Rape

lenaschrn's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Abandonment, Cancer, Murder, Alcoholism, Body horror, Terminal illness, War, Blood, Death, Gore, Grief, Physical abuse, Rape, Death of parent, and Violence

Moderate: Child death, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Infertility and Toxic friendship

carlafiorenzo's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/injury detail, Suicide attempt, Infidelity, Child death, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Racism, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Vomit, Abandonment, War, Body horror, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Racial slurs, Colonisation, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Addiction, Alcohol, Grief, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Excrement, Hate crime, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

lorenag5's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Injury/injury detail, Cancer, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Colonisation, Alcoholism, Violence, Grief, Abortion, War, Child death, and Blood

marie's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Abortion, Injury/injury detail, War, Rape, Abandonment, Deportation, Death of parent, and Death

Moderate: Colonisation, Alcoholism, Child death, Blood, and Cancer

bookswithgeorgia's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Pregnancy, Rape, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and War

candournat's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

So beautifully written and so sad.. an absolute must read if you’re a fan of historical fiction, or want to learn more about the Vietnam War! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Classism, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Abandonment, Abortion, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/injury detail, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, and War

202claire's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/injury detail, Murder, Death of parent, Death, Colonisation, Blood, Abandonment, War, Violence, Torture, Physical abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, and Medical content

Minor: Alcoholism

feralbookwife's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad 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: Pregnancy, Blood, Sexual violence, Cancer, Alcoholism, Abandonment, War, Death, Grief, Colonisation, Abortion, Violence, Torture, Rape, Physical abuse, Murder, Medical trauma, Medical content, Drug use, and Child death

Moderate: Sexism, Child abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Xenophobia

woolgatherer's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.25

If time allowed, I would have read The Mountain Sings in one sitting. It was tough and heartbreaking to read, but Nguyễn wrote such a powerful story featuring strong women who, despite all the struggles they have faced, continued to push forward. I admittedly don’t know much about Vietnam’s history, so this book was not only an engaging story for me but an opportunity to learn as well. There was an intimacy and a complex love for the country and its people that Nguyễn explored through themes on family and compassion, but also war and grief.

One thing that took a little bit of getting used to was the jumping back and forth between time. It was disconcerting at first, but it started making more sense as you learned more about the Trần family.

Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed The Mountain Sings, finding that I needed to reflect on the themes I mentioned earlier. It’s clear that one thing that Nguyễn wants the reader to understand is the devastating effects of conflict, making you think about ongoing conflict today. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Violence, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Rape, Blood, Torture, Abortion, and Alcoholism

Minor: Genocide and Cancer