Reviews with content warning for Violence - Fledgling

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

91 reviews

abbylw's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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gellyreads's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This is a hard rating to give. As per usual, with Butler’s work, there are some really dark, twisted, and traumatic topics. But they’re always there for a reason. I think the main thing that I find enjoyable about this work is the unique perspective of the vampire for. And I love the vampire politics that happen, especially at the end of the novel. This ended up being pretty fun, after a rocky start.

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3littlewordz's review against another edition

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mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

I thought this would be...good. This book was my introduction to Octavia Butler and I read it to fulfill a prompt for a reading challenge I'm participating in. I have read so many glowing reviews for Butler's books, and maybe I should have started with Parable of the Sower or Kindred, because Fledgling fell incredibly flat for me. I had high hopes in the beginning for a suspenseful thriller that scared me just a bit. I got none of that, but got a lot of Ina history, "dispelling" vampire myth, and a bit of discomfort at the imagery of a childlike vampire sexually involved with human adults. Far too much of the later chapters were spent describing the Ina families. I wanted this to be so so much better. I am now hoping Parable of the Sower will not disappoint me as well.

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risaleel'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? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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linblythe_pub22's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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halfbloodprincess_hogwarts's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense slow-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

This is the first book I have ever read by Octavia E. Butler and I am over the MOON happy after reading this.

The MC is a Black Vampire whom is desirable, courageous, brave, unforgettable and a refreshing character. She wakes up in a cave in excruciating pain with no memory of what happened to her nor who she is. We come to know the world through her eyes and who she is as the story progresses. Along with help from those on the way.

I did mentally clutch my metaphoric pearls (especially while driving) listening to the audiobook. This is definitely more for mature audiences. It's so difficult to express my love for this novel without dumping spoilers. Just impossible.

Found family, my favorite trope, plays a major role in Fledgling and I could 100% relisten to this again and again.

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mcfox5455's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No

4.5

i liked this a lot! i was skeptical of it being a vampire book since i never got into vampires books that much, but fledgling intentionally challenges the general idea of vamps. its pretty cool ! its fun to see what Butler kept from general vampire lore and what she completely omits. this book was a lot of fun to read after reading the parable series since there are a lot of similarities in the general feel. i think if you like parable, you'll likely like this book too! i found it to be a relatively quick, easy read and something to sink hours into at a time.

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thebookesquire's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative tense fast-paced

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

2.0

This was fine. Not bad and definitely not great but it did hold my interest until the very end. I enjoyed the mystery, exploring the vampire politics and vampire tribunal, and I really enjoyed the commentary on “pure” vampires vs “impure” vampires. However, I was perpetually disgusted throughout the entire book. I just couldn’t wrap my head around the pedophilia. Yes, Shori is a 53-year-old but she’s still a child both in physical appearance and a child by vampire standards in this world. I hated all her symbionts because I couldn’t comprehend how they could allow themselves to be with Shori sexually. Why is it that the Gordons did not allow themselves to mate with Shori because they recognized she was a child and much too young for sexual activity/mating but the humans couldn’t? It was too disturbing. Moreover, Shori’s age was clearly a deliberate choice by the author but why? The same story could have occurred with Shori in a 19-year-old body and at least help (although not cure) the cringe factor. Her age did nothing to enhance the story. Why couldn’t she have been a 53-year-old vampire in a young adult body? Why did she have to be a child?

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catalyst226's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Short Review: Damn, even vampires are racist...

Actual Review:
Vampire lore, critiques of bigotry and racism, mystery, and Butler's incredibly compelling writing style. Need I say more?

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benmeyer50's review against another edition

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mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

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