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abithoughtful's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
The multiple perspectives really help to nail home the novel's key themes about the utterly ludicrous nature of racist British attitudes, particularly against the historical backdrop. I really loved that all our narrators are flawed in some way or another - all equally human, with weaknesses that overlap in really resonant ways (the way Hortense and Bernard both jump to conclusions, how Queenie and Hortense both consider themselves a little above those they grew up with, how Gilbert and Bernard both naively cling to hopes of heroism and harebrained schemes for riches, how Queenie and Hortense and Gilbert all get married for primary reasons that aren't love). There's a wonderful subtlety to Levy's characterisation, and her characters are so believable.
I don't think the novel necessarily needed the
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and War
Moderate: Gore, Infidelity, Sexual content, Violence, Police brutality, and Colonisation
Minor: Child death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
nialiversuch's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Abortion
afion's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, and Police brutality
Moderate: Pedophilia and Pregnancy
Minor: Excrement
sarah984's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The character voices were all unique and it was interesting to see the same situations from their different points of view. I docked a star because it started getting kind of melodramatic and silly near the end.
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Dementia, and Grief
Minor: Cancer, Cursing, Incest, Terminal illness, and Excrement
I marked incest here because there is a character who is in love with her second cousin and spends a significant portion of the novel obsessing over him, but nothing much actually happens between them.