Reviews tagging 'Death'

Rosalera by Tade Thompson

26 reviews

mar's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

really cool take on alien invasion/first contact! BIG fan the whole "telepathy" thing - telepathy is such a bizarrely common landmark of classic science fiction, and i loved seeing this book build on that legacy while actually adding a "science" aspect to it. kaaro's constant objectification of women was fucking exhausting tho

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, and Medical content

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Torture, Excrement, Kidnapping, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Rape, Islamophobia, and Sexual harassment

oceanwriter's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• 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

1.0

This was an experimental read for me as part of a reading challenge. The summary sounded interesting so I decided to give it a go. Unfortunately, this just wasn't my forte. I'm used to non-linear timelines in historical fiction but I guess I have difficulty following along with sci-fi. I started off listening to this as an audiobook but switched to the ebook about a quarter of the way in but it didn't help much. Another reason I struggled through it was the excessive swearing. It was distracting. I'm glad I tried it as the plot was interesting at its core, but between some of the subject matters and politics, it's not something I personally enjoyed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Sexual content, and Violence

Moderate: Death, Torture, and Medical content

therainbowshelf's review against another edition

mysterious slow-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

4.0

The world building is excellent. I liked the shared mindspace created by alien fungus and enjoyed the book being set in Nigeria. The plot lost me a few times, but that's mostly because it was hard following the time jumps (between audio and the way I tend to process information). The side characters needed more characterization. I kept forgetting which woman was which. I did enjoy when one character told Kaaro that a woman in his life wasn’t a side character in his story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, and Alcohol

internationalreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

liesbethvv's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

The first science fiction book I’ve ever read and wow, what a way to dip my toes into the genre! Between the information overload, the unnecessary explicit sexual content and the revived people popping up randomly, I’m not sure this was the book for me. The imaginative writing Tade displays in this novel combined with the underlying messages of anti-colonialism and the sacrifices to a technology-driven society make this book an interesting start into the genre. It didn’t convince me to read the rest of the trilogy though. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Death

klfgasaway's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

goosegrimm's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

3.5

Rosewater is an interesting book. I'm not quite sure its my cup of tea however. I very much enjoyed Thompson's voice and his attention to detail in the setting. His prose is beautiful and really draws you in. However, the narrative is very disjointed and while that serves the overall story quite well, I had difficulty following even with the chapter headings. My suspension of disbelief was also occasionally broken both by the timeline changes and some of the plot points. Overall if you would like a genuinely fascinating sci-fi world to explore, this is a great fit. Just be warned that it can occasionally be difficult to follow despite how beautifully written it is. I am excited to read further works both in the Wormwood trilogy and by Thompson. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Chronic illness, Miscarriage, Torture, Kidnapping, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Homophobia, Misogyny, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Classism

thisisbecker's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• 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? It's complicated

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, and Murder

jenny_d's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

skudiklier's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

This book was super interesting! I had a weird experience reading it because I did so very slowly and deliberately, which is unusual for me. It was somewhat dark and not entirely what I expected. But I hope to read the rest of the trilogy eventually!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Confinement, Drug use, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Child death, Fatphobia, Genocide, Homophobia, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Islamophobia, Car accident, Colonisation, and War