Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

16 reviews

claire518's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? No

4.25

It's rare to find really good historical mysteries and Blood & Sugar (and its sequel which I accidentally read first) nails this. The mystery feels very of its time - given the political context and society it is very grounded in - but still kept me guessing the whole way.

There are also very few books that I have read that deal this closely with the topic of the slave trade. This book doesn't shy away from the realities of slavery, and thankfully doesn't oversympatise or try to make excuses for those that engage in it. This makes it a hard read to get through as the content is so dark, and means most of the characters are deeply unpleasant, but I appreciate having more material that brings this time to light.

I did find Harry Corsham to be quite naive and a bit annoying at first as he thought that he could just barge his way in and get answers despite obviously having powerful people suppressing the truth. But I think this really worked in the end because he developed a lot as he uncovered the answers. I appreciate that he learned to stand up for his views while still playing things smart in the end. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gore, Rape, Suicide, and Blood

Minor: Pedophilia

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

snakeling's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence

Minor: Child abuse

leahhhtaylor's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

i really hoped this book would be better after reading square of sevens. i feel it sort of got lost in the middle and then came out with a sort of undercooked ending. but i’ll give her other book a read to determine if this was just an unfortunate flop! and maybe i just should write off all books using the hard r for my own sake

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Torture, and Violence

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

ronanmcd's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-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

3.75

An exciting, tense look at a reproduction of the massacre that turned public opinion in the UK against slavery. It does a good job of looking at the various viewpoints around the trade and the massive trauma it induced.
Use of the n-word by the less savoury characters, and the drawing a line on racism at the time of abolition aside, the book tells a good story but very much from a white saviour viewpoint. That the hero is a man of the crown underpins this. Nonetheless, it's very entertaining, evocative and in its way informative.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Murder, Outing, and Colonisation

carysn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Violence, Blood, Vomit, and War

khall123's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Trafficking

shelfofunread's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Rape, and War

gurofl's review against another edition

I just didn't enjoy it. It was a bit difficult to get into, and there was something about the narrator's voice that made it difficult for me to hear all the words. I think I was a bit bored, and all the gruesome details of torture and slavery made me not want to continue with the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery and Torture