Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

7 reviews

sandysmith's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad 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

4.25

It's an excellent if harrowing read. Historical fiction at its finest concentrating on the murder of Tad Archer and his friend Captain Henry (Harry) Corsham investigating what happened. The murder whilst gripping was a side story to the slave trade and the goings on of the 18th century. Very evocative, brilliantly written, and you could smell the unpleasant smells of London and particularly the slave ships in Deptford. Bringing into focus the bribery and corruption of the time at all levels of society. Racism, child abuse, classism and homophobia are explored. There are particularly unpleasant characters, with very few nicer characters that made you back Harry throughout his exploration of the murder of his friend. It was interesting, and in particular, the British involvement of the slave trade is laid unpleasantly bare. It packs its punches. Superbly researched and written, an investigation of a murder not for the faint-hearted. Excellent stuff

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

simplyamysue's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Torture

lostingothicmusic's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, and Colonisation

A difficult book to read.

marvel_and_mischief's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.0

The pace is slow in parts and sometimes I felt there were a few too many characters to keep track of. But the historical context of the book is fascinating and grim, and the characters with the largest roles (Cinnamon, Jamaica Mary, Brabazon, Scipio) kept me hooked until the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

hannahrhian's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

michael_hayden's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, and Trafficking

Moderate: Pedophilia and Sexual assault

meiyee's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense

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

3.5

i really enjoyed this book but the ending left me a bit cold - the murderer's motive was a bit lacking and i found the last few chapters confusing. however, the writing and descriptions of deptford and london were brilliant. be aware of a lot of use of racial slurs and racist language.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Violence

Moderate: Homophobia, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence