Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

91 reviews

chrisljm's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Yeah I cried. 

Madeline Miller is a beautiful writer and I did enjoy her retelling of this myth, but I didn't find it to be particularly remarkable. 

I think the thing I found most puzzling was Patroclus' inclination towards saving women from being war trophies when this was very much a sociopolitical norm during this period in time. Of course that's not to say I wanted to see more scenes of women being brutalized or that it's impossible for there to be any person during this period to disagree with such practices, but I think when making the decision to have that be one of the main characters in this myth for the purpose of having a more likable protagonist, it becomes a story that lacks the social and cultural context of the historical myths by changing certain themes to fit modern sensibilities. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Colonisation

Minor: Child abuse and Alcohol

mconroy9137's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Classism, Deportation, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Alcohol

tallyswrldd's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

its slow in the beginning but once it gets going it pulls you in. you will cry but its worth it, its the most beautifully written book ive ever read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

marsbarz0903's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Genocide, Murder, and War

Moderate: Rape and Grief

eryncaroline's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

2.5

I was so excited to read this book after hearing such rave reviews and that tissues are required for this one. Definitely well-written and such an interesting dive into these mythological greek characters, but the world building felt inconsistent with the way the gods play a role in the story and once the battle of troy began the number of "time jumps" really takes you out of the story waiting for the "big thing" to happen. I did really enjoy the first half of the book and I was sold on the characters and really interested in their story, but it was difficult to watch the characters change and see the fates play out. Still pondering the story and my review, but I'm glad to have read it!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

dkguida's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and War

Moderate: Sexual assault

rtorrey's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War

shayna14's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Homophobia, Torture, Excrement, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Outing, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Abandonment

_grace_c_'s review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring 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

Warning-you will cry from chapter Thirty One onwards

I knew this book was going to be great, but great is an understatement. Madeline Millers writing is so beautiful and poetic, one of the best I've ever read. The author was so committed to showing that Achilles and Patroclus had more than just a brotherly bond, it was a bond of love, honesty and understanding. An exile and a Prince growing together, skilled in the arts of war and medicine, and staying at one another's side through everything. This book is so heart felt and heart breaking. In the end, it is known that there love mattered more to eachother than anything else and it is accepted and respected. The world of Greek mythology is built wonderfully also. I urge anyone and everyone to read this book ❤️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Rape, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, and War

kshy's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

The beginning was so strong that I believe it left my expectations way too lifted to be able to find the second half of the book enjoyable. I feel that if the intention was to tell a story from Homer's works through the lens of romance, that romance that was established so strongly in the beginning should have been maintained throughout the entirety of the novel, rather than withering in the second half.

This made the deaths of Achilles and Patroclus feel so much more hollow and emotionless than they had the potential to be, because the romance and personalities that had previously been so vividly expressed through the writing had withered away long before.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail