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hamstringy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Let's sort my criticisms into petty and conceptual:
Petty Nitpicks:
- Women in the 1890s wearing "lacy bras"
- A character predicting she'd graduate from UCLA in the 90s with $50k in debt (which there is no way to do in 4-5 years)
- People using modern slang while time traveling while having people of the times understand them (okay sure, we're ignoring historical linguistics, that is a valid choice), but they catch enemy time travelers because they use modern slang??
- I find this book to be quite bioessentialist--a lot of it is focused on an expanded Comstock act and the legality of abortion, which does most obviously affect people with uteruses (often women). This is fine, but the narrative keeps harping on the fact that the Sisters of Harriet are for women and nonbinary people. What about trans men? Are they not central to the underlying themes of autonomy, particularly with people obsessed with "female" fertility? What does the Comstock act do to affect nonbinary people and trans women? Why are all but one of the main characters women if there is gender diversity? It takes a lot of wind out of this book's sails, and, honestly, part of me wished the author just chose to make the Sisters of Harriet focused on abortion for women, because that's all they seemed equipped to handle.
- I find the constant pacifism of the Sisters to be incredibly annoying. I think this is in large part because I'm not a staunch interpersonal pacifist myself, but it also doesn't really make sense in-book: what is one man versus the global health of all women? No one ever seems to express a very "sanctity of all life" sentiment, so it feels really disappointing a choice to shy away from the conflict between violence and autonomy.
- I wish the Comstockers weren't made out to be these cartoonish villains. People who are anti-abortion can seem that way, but I think it's a generally more interesting and more compelling struggle if the Comstockers have complexity and nuance--this is hinted at in the very first scene, where a Comstocker is anti-college because of its establishment roots, but their politics quickly devolve into calling all women sluts and wanting them dead.
A riot grrl band never exists because the main character and her friend succeed and legalize abortion in the 21st century, but the riot grrl movement (and in particular this Latina-fronted band) was never just focused on abortion. Did men suddenly stop raping, harrassing, and objectifying musicians?
Graphic: Cursing, Rape, Sexism, Transphobia, and Abortion
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, and Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, and Toxic friendship
fenny_42's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Read this if you’re interested in intersectional history—anarchism, suffrage, reproductive rights, slavery, music and dance. There is SO MUCH going on in this book, and it is all painfully excellent.
LOTS of trigger warnings. I tagged as many as I could think of.
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Murder
Moderate: Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Antisemitism, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Alcohol
jhbandcats's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is topical, having been published in 2019, three years before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. It describes a 1993 and a 2022 where abortion has never been legalized, and time travelers work to edit the timeline in favor of women’s rights. Of course, the people who deny rights to women are just as busy trying to edit the timeline to crush women and turn them into breeders. (It feels all too real in that sense.)
Engaging story, valiant characters, salient topic - an excellent book.
Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Abortion, Murder, and Alcohol
rafaelsampaio's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Minor: Deadnaming, Hate crime, Racial slurs, and Racism
thesawyerbean's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
However, where this book falls short is I’m not sure the vision of the fundamental aspect, the time travel and its mechanics, were as defined and clear as they should have been. I did have to suspend belief and go along with it at certain points because it did seem like they flouted their own predefined rules in order for the plot to continue. By the end, although it was satisfying and a satisfactory end, there were still so many questions left unanswered - the characters and I were both left asking ‘who knows?’. In certain ways it made it more convoluted than it already was trying to justify some of the plot points.
Overall this book was good and definitely worth a read. A powerful feminist sci-fi novel, full of historical context and loveable characters, with an overarching plot-line we can all feel impassioned about.
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
aardwyrm's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
The book does a good job of juggling time travel and changing realities, slipping in needful details and surprises. Plot is really its strongest point. There's some occasional clunky dialogue; character speak out loud the same way they internally monologue, and infodump their emotions once in a while. But the worst this'll do is throw you out of the text a minute. It's an intensely, deliberately political book, which may not be everyone's choice, but it's an effective, well balanced time thriller, too.
Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
lain_darko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Deadnaming, Racism, Suicide, Blood, and Antisemitism
Minor: Vomit and Alcohol
fraxisle's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Child death, Deadnaming, Genocide, Sexual assault, Vomit, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and War
skl_hcn's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Minor: Racial slurs, Suicide, and Vomit
courtneyfalling's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Biggest piece of advice: Read the content warnings.
Specific notes:
- I really like Beth's character. I felt so personally drawn to her, to how she reacted to trauma and how she imagined her future.
This was one of the most real and harrowing descriptions of a volatile father I've ever seen, and as someone who shares a lot of those experiences with Beth, I did have to pause after many of her chapters and take a breath. I do like where her story ended up, but definitely very heavy. I did not see that twist coming, holy shit! Just had to totally reassess how I had viewed Tess's backstory up to that point. But it was pulled off pretty well and set up the ending. - I do like how Tess's story ended up, but for most of the novel, she just frustrated me. She's terrible at taking the information she's learned while traveling and actually incorporating it into her actions at all.
The scene where she goes to the Lady Managers to set up a cultural tea is so cringy. Why would she just expect sudden sisterhood? It's so historically unbased and represents a real lack of intersectional feminist awareness at her core, beyond the right terms or basic frameworks, at a real fundamental and personal level. Also, when she first shows up to the Expo, she immediately fucks up and tells Aseel her whole, half-baked plan. You're telling me she's traveled so much and become so important and well-known across history with absolutely zero social awareness or cover-up skills? I didn't believe how blank she was. Morehshin's character comes in really suddenly and we never get to learn much about her. I honestly could've done without her... she felt too thrown in without the proper context setting. - I wanted more murder. There's a lot of time spent feeling guilty about violence or theorizing about how violence is never truly justified, but the book fails to truly back up why violence doesn't work or why it's overshadowed by its immorality, especially for the first half of the book while establishing how Tess doesn't use violence.
I'm honestly glad Tess ended up returning to her roots as a killer; at that point even the unequivocal embrace of bloodthirsty killing felt better than the moralistic anti-violence line that took over so much of the book. Upon meeting one of the world's crappiest, most one-dimensional villains, Tess notes how his birth year, 2379, makes him "a contemporary of Berenice's killer." But that chapter where we briefly meet Berenice's would-be killer is from Enid's perspective, and Enid never fully shares what happened when she gets back to 2022. It actually seemed like she was purposefully not mentioning how futuristic these villains truly were. So how does Tess know, and why is it such a minor deal to her that it's only coming up now? Bad communication-related plot hole. - I feel like this book's feminism often tried to rope in trans women and nonbinary folks without fully, fundamentally rethinking its concepts of "feminine" bodies and power. There were some scenes about the Divine Feminine that strayed a little toward bioessentialist, and a lot of the book focused on reproductive rights (and specifically reproductive rights, not reproductive justice). Which is extra frustrating because the author is nonbinary! And I really wanted these issues to be handled with a little more nuance and centering of trans women and nonbinary folks specifically.
- Beyond a few jokes about the elaborate hell that is tenure review, this book doesn't really unpack how its characters navigate their status within a university even as they try to adapt and subvert how they're using their funding. At points, it sets up university education as a site of automatic and only forward progress, like access to the university is the main issue, not the deeper power dynamics of economic authority, institutional and cultural sway, knowledge definition, and land and resource theft that universities bank on.
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Transphobia, Blood, Abortion, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Pedophilia, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Cultural appropriation
Minor: Slavery, Vomit, Alcohol, and Colonisation