Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson

31 reviews

bella_finlayson's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-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? No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Gaslighting

joliebean's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War

pinkalpaca's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, and War

jhbandcats's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I really liked this right up until the last two pages when it went off the rails. Like the book that preceded it, it was enjoyable and entertaining. The writing was smooth and drew me in rather than complex and dense. It seemed more like YA fare but with non-YA explicit sex scenes. 

We learn a lot more about the character Ciara who was only briefly noted in the first book, and we gradually learn her history. She’s presented as a sympathetic character here although she was distinctly unlikable when introduced. 

I found this book too manipulative and preachy. I agree with everything the author is saying but I prefer to figure things out on my own. That said, I did appreciate the clear references to our divided society, conservative and xenophobic nationalism versus liberal acceptance and globalism. It was still too heavy-handed, though. Ultimately somewhat disappointing, mostly due to the ending. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Infidelity, Misogyny, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

ashley_reya's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

4.5

Thoroughly enjoyed this continuation of my favorite coven. Just when I think Dawson is gonna zig, the story zags!

If you enjoy tales of complex friendships, magic, and fighting the patriarchy then you will love this series.

Looking forward to the next installment whenever it arrives! Cannot wait to see how this all goes with Theo, Niamh, & Ciara 👀✨

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Infidelity, Slavery, Trafficking, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Miscarriage

dani_reis's review

A week from hell and I just can't care enough to keep going. The audio is SUPERB with Nicola and the plot is better than book 1, but there's so many POVs and not this week.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, and Murder

minervacerridwen's review against another edition

dark lighthearted mysterious relaxing tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Just like Her Majesty's Royal Coven, this was a fast-paced read with spy movie elements in a magical world. I did feel like it dragged a bit in the middle of the book, though the point-of-view changes helped to keep me intrigued about other things that were going on enough to keep reading. Overall the atmosphere was a little darker and less magical, with more focus on characters fucking each other over than on sisterhood (which makes sense, considering the new main character, but also made it a little less appealing to dive back in after a reading break). The pacing of the ending was a lot more satisfying to me than in the first book, and once again there were some interesting twists to make me very curious about the next part!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Vomit, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Racism, Blood, Abandonment, and Alcohol

sacredgriefsociety's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

I LOVED IT!

I am gutted there isn’t a third yet and the next thing out is a prequel. The ending had me gasping and yelling - even my kid wanted to know what had happened (and he’s 4).

I enjoyed this more than the first but that’s likely due to the fact I had a better understanding of just now grounded Dawson’s work is in our own reality. Her ability to create a pocket world inside the actual reality we’re currently living is extraordinary but it made for a slightly jarring experience at first. 

I cannot wait for more of this story -  prequel which will talk about one of my favorite historical figures (Anne Boleyn) and the next installment from present day can’t arrive fast enough. 

Love love love 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Violence

whoisrois's review against another edition

dark 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

4.0

“Witches will not be a weapon of the state” bbygirl u are the state 😭🤧 way better than the first book tho 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and War

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Transphobia

readwithria's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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

The Shadow Cabinet was an amazing continuation of the Her Majesty’s Royal Coven series! The plot thickened, the characters developed, and everything expanded while also weaving threads together.

I’m so sad that this book is over. It is an excellent exploration of redemption, self identity, gender politics, morality, addiction, and so much more! I love this series, and Juno Dawson has given us a world with high stakes where anything can happen and nothing is as simple as it seems.

I cannot wait for book 3! Five stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Cursing and Murder