Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Über den wilden Fluss by Philip Pullman

14 reviews

whatulysses's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Lacks the magic of the original series - more a slog through plot that happens to expand what we thought we knew about Lyra's world. I think, also, I just wanted The Book of Dust to not be about Special Lyra, but ultimately...it is.

That said, I like the characters we meet, and AM glad to see how the world works beyond what we saw in His Dark Materials. It feels like a story that could have played out in Michigan or Minnesota, rather than England (and actually, I wish we could see what those places were like in this world!).

Content note: This is a darker story than the original trilogy - we see humans abuse their daemons, multiple references to child sexual assault, and violence/murder. 
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chrissycat1115's review against another edition

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adventurous tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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themadtink's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

The end is a bit rush, as in every Pullman book.
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marioncromb's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I love the characters of Malcolm and Hannah. I particularly liked all the stuff at the beginning, with Malcolm doing odd jobs at the priory, chatting to customers etc. Quite dark in places with the rise of the magisterium etc with deliberate parallels to fascism, Hitler youth etc. Also parallels to the Odyssey. Could have done without the
preteen romance towards the end, just let them be friends dammit
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sarahbliss's review against another edition

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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? No

5.0

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cowardlyteaman's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I've been very generous with the hig  ratings lately, but I can't help it when so many books are good.

It's been a while since I read His Dark Materials, but I absolutely love this return of the universe. It's obvious how Malcolm Polstead influenced Lyra's subconsciousness.

However, I must admit that this book starts off so incredibly with so many amazing areas to explore, and it really raises your expectations on the story-to-come, but in the second half most of these things are pretty much just dropped? The League of St. Alexander, for example, was something I really really liked and wanted more explored in the book.

I have to leave off a note on how amazing the names in this book are, though. I will never seize to fall in love with Pullman's choices on character names. Malcolm, Asta, Asriel, Sophonax, Pantalaimon, Coram van Texel??? So sexy. Not to mention the beautiful image of the Trout you get in the first chapter—with the terrace over the water and the two peacocks.

I absolutely recommend this book.
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vampire_burrito's review against another edition

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slow-paced

3.0

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erinwolf1997's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.75

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magkerr's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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carlyalynnsia's review against another edition

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I enjoyed most of this book, but I didn't like the hovering threat of sexual violence that was used throughout.
I ended up asking my partner who had finished the book whether it was going to come to fruition, and when he confirmed that one of the main characters, an underage girl, is indeed sexually assaulted by an older man, I decided I did not want to continue reading.
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