Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.

80 reviews

elliecottrell's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book is a very sad but moving book that heavily explores ancestral connections (and as part of this, ancestral/indigenous thinking) in the context of slavery. I really enjoyed this book, and as an LGBTQ person I felt this book was really powerful in a sad way, emulating a narrative where a phoenix arises out of the ruins/ashes. Would read again :)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, Slavery, and Violence

jaytongue's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? No

4.25

This book deals with something no other book I've read really does, which is the violation of the sexual autonomy of slaves in the Antebellum American South. The central conflict is a relationship between two enslaved boys that should not exist, and exists in defiance of the fact that they were purchased in order to be bred, as all slaves were expected to be as part of a return on investment. The resulting narrative is one that explores the true horrors of slavery in the America, as well as the twisted mentalities of dehumanization and gross disregard for human dignity that justified it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder

greenrequiem's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism

atamano's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Excrement, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism

pravda_iskra's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

2.0

The story that is contained in this book is powerful and moving. I enjoyed the historical interludes and the short chapters that were the voices of the ancestors reaching out to talk to the diaspora. I loved Isaiah and Samuel. There was so much potential here. 

The words describing that story are an overwritten, purple prose mess that is almost impossible to parse even as a native English speaker. I had to reread passages multiple times to glean their meaning. Every sentence and paragraph is layered with endless metaphor and a description of the minutiae that do nothing to aid one’s understanding of the text. And because every chapter is from someone else’s point of view, we never get what ultimately I was looking for: the focus on Isaiah and Samuel and their love for each other, not how other people responded to it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Rape, Slavery, and Violence

peachmoni's review

challenging mysterious reflective slow-paced

• 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Gun violence, Homophobia, Rape, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Child death, Genocide, Infertility, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

burnourhistory's review

dark emotional slow-paced

• 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

rach94's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Violence

Moderate: Vomit

ladygetslit's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.75

This is a powerful book filled with so much pain. It’s definitely worth reading, but I can’t say that I enjoyed reading it. My main complaints: there are so many characters and they each seem to want their chance to shine, which is not my favorite style of storytelling; also, the whole book felt very heavy-handed, like it was trying really hard to be Important Literature. I would’ve enjoyed this more if it focused purely on Isaiah and Samuel’s relationship, or even a comparison between them and their ancestors. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Colonisation

yvespiders's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad

5.0

Though this is an emotional and challenging read, I love how Robert Jones, Jr. crafted this painful yet tender love story. He also seems to make references to things we see today, yet manages to maintain the authenticity of this historical fiction's time period. I fell in love with the female characters and was moved to tears by the two main characters' genuine love for each other.  
 
This book is a reminder not only of the trauma of white supremacy and slavery, but also of how hateful, colonial religious indoctrination feeds into the already existing greed of oppressors, and sadly can make us fight against our natural tendencies to love ourselves and others.
 
Like I said, this is not an easy book to read, so you might want to consider looking at the content warnings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Violence