Reviews tagging 'War'

Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

74 reviews

trin_16's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

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

4.25

This book was a wonderful blend of history, folklore, and fiction. I loved how the author weaved the stories of the Russian pogroms with the traditional stories of baba yaga. The ending was fantastic, and my only complaint was that this story has some half-baked plot points, and the pace was a bit slow in the beginning/middle but overall... so so good. Wonderful book and so different from most stories I've read before. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Genocide, Violence, Antisemitism, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and War

yellowbinge's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Genocide, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Violence, Xenophobia, and War

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Alcohol

heytaytay12's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I really wanted to love this book more! The idea of the story and some of the elements were SO GOOD. I loved the house acting as a narrator - those sections were very well done. The idea of generational trauma manifesting as magic and the long shadow man trying to erase a people’s history - also very interesting concepts. Also, loved the characters brought to life such as Winnie and the Fool. 

I had a hard time with the main characters. They needed to just sit down and talk to each other, but in a classic communication trope they didn’t till the end. Also, they needed to work through their issues and instead they just avoided them. Finally, the side characters didn’t seem very fleshed out, more like plot tools. The stakes were fairly low, and there was a lot more gore than I was expecting outside of the Pogram history. 

Parts were really beautifully done, but overall the story fell flat for me. I can see why people love it though! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and War

uranaishi's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Torture, Xenophobia, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War

vivelarevolution's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

I might have words later, but I don't have them now. This book was incredible. Also, incredibly heavy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Murder, and War

Minor: Rape, Torture, and Alcohol

Chapter 38 ends in what I would characterize as a suicide. Chapter 43 describes a pogrom.

teigenbereadin's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

5.0

Phenomenal folktale/fairytale retelling! I went into this semi-blind and it was the most rewarding story. I loved the beautiful prose and often found myself reading passages out loud to my husband. There are 3 main character POVs and each have a different voice that is so distinct. The characters feel so real and the fantasy world is similar to our own, but magical and easy to follow. I highly recommend this to everyone. But do check the triggers!! I definitely wish I had to get a heads-up. But still, very worth a read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Antisemitism, and War

enyltiak's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful 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

Lying was reductive, but in a way, all art was a form of lying. Poets hyperbolize. Painters heighten colors, smudge edges. Actors shapeshift. All ways to twist reality in order to tell a deeper, more potent truth. Fact only goes so far. There are a finite number of facts in the universe with which to tell a story. Lies, on the other hand, are limitless. 

What an incredible, wonderful book. Stories about houses, about hauntings, about stories themselves, will always draw me in and delight me. I can't express the love I have for this story. I'd rate it six stars if I could, if not more. Utter perfection, falling somewhere between the cozy epic-ness of Six of Crows and the comforting gothic of A Series of Unfortunate Events. It's a book about folk tales and magic and siblings and ghosts and memory, told from the perspective of the house in which the characters reside. I cannot recommend it enough. An instant new favorite. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and War

amiablemath's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-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

While I felt the book was a bit slow and not terribly engaging, the ending was very well done and abs lutely made it with the read. However, it was also terribly dark and I doubt I will ever have the desire to read this one again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Self harm, Violence, Antisemitism, and War

Minor: Sexual violence

lancemama's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation, and War

lisettemarie's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Death, and War