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wipeout's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Rape, Suicide, Violence, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Pandemic/Epidemic
loafhart's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
There is a lottt of violence.. All formsdajul73's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, and Death
Moderate: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Grief, and Murder
jess2obsess's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Excrement, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and War
vic_to_ria's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book took me a while to get into. Up until like 30% it was rough for me- I kept putting it down and walking away from it but after 45% definitely the plot picks up really quickly. It is a very darkly themed novel so people be warned- check the content warnings plz- but it still had light hearted moments that made you feel for the characters and why they became the way that the are.
(Can I just say that Micheal is my fav and he deserves the world.)
The plot twist was something that we thought of more and more as we continue reading so it wasn’t a major shock but how we get there was the true mystery like damn it was fun to see it all unfold.
Overall I really enjoyed it but I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.
Graphic: Death, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
literary_liv'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
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Rape, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Sexual violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and War
mykes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
beanjoles's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
3.75
Technical comments:
The author did a great job of imbuing each POV character with a distinctive voice, despite writing in the third person. I was impressed with how well these came across. That said, my expectations for the story’s tone and cadence were set by the initial chapters following Carolyn. The shift to other characters was jarring. It took me out of the story so completely that I had a hard time connecting with or accepting some of the wilder plot points. (Steve’s entire escape from the dead one’s house to the vet with Naga being a notable example.) This is an area where I feel that the author’s strengths in giving the characters distinct voices actually did the story a disservice.
On a related note, I h a t e d the way that spoken non-standard English dialects were written. (Thinking mainly of Erwin’s chapters, but also Steve’s in some places.) It’s off-putting to have entire chapters dedicated to eloquently and explicitly describing ritualized child abuse in the same book as characters who say, “lissen,” “ah’ite,” “g’wan,” “daaaayum” (four As, I checked!), and “da fuck.” Like, it felt disrespectful of the gravity of the tale because it did not feel authentic in the least. If this stylistic choice had been pulled off better then, yeah, sure, do it. But the execution was not good and got worse as the book progressed.
Otherwise, the prose was fairly strong and moving. Well, Carolyn’s parts were. I understand why we couldn’t follow her the whole way through, but would that we could’ve. :’)
Some disjointed commentary on plotting and characterization:
I really enjoyed the mythological fantasy elements, like the backstory of the king of the lions and his daughter. They went a long way toward fleshing out the world in which Carolyn, Father, and the other librarians are operating.
I would have liked a bit more from the confrontation/passing of the torch with Father at the end. It felt like he was given a pass on his HORRIFIC abuses of these kids (and, honestly, for what! Carolyn killed them all in the end anyway) and just got to be like, “I’m sorry I tortured you and your friends for 15 years but it was for ~ your greater good ~ ok.” And Carolyn is just like, “Yeah ok have fun in your new universe!” ????
The pacing was a bit uneven in the middle section of the book and felt almost frenetic by the end. It still mostly worked for me, though. Steve becoming the new sun was a nice and fitting end for his character arc.
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use
lori007's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
mcft37's review against another edition
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting