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obfuscatress's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Gun violence
Repeated mentions & brief descriptions of physical violence towards a pregnant woman resulting in miscarriageeefmaoam's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was right up my alley, even though I wouldn’t have suspected it to be based on the genre/themes/descriptions. I love the way the story slowly unfolds, constantly switching perspectives, all the while being meta-critical of the genre itself AND the (developing) economic systems and its exploits (Yes, I wanted to be a pretentious teen while I wasn’t, but somehow still ended up becoming an adult who loves pretentious literature lol). The historical touches such as censoring some words, while using ‘whoring’ freely adds to the atmosphere and moody feel (haha, funny reference, so smart).
While reading I kept on whisking but also dreading Netflix would make this book into a limited-series; hoping because I wanted to see the world of Hokitika and all its residence and their stories come to life, dreading because I don’t think Netflix would or could do right by this beautiful story. Turns out the BBC did, so I’m off to watch that show!
I want to make more poignant points about the book and why you should read it, but I’m still a little bit too overwhelmed by the magnitude and beauty of this story. So, you should just read it yourselves if you want to know why I liked it so much ;)
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
shayminxcx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, and Murder
Moderate: Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Antisemitism, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Classism
bill369's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The characters were complex, gripping and overall perfect. Nevertheless, I didn't grow to like them. I was more interested in the plot than the characters.
Twists, illegitimate bastards, séances, past disputes and an immense amount of money missing. Contained. The plot is fabulous! I must acknowledge that it was hard getting into the book. Primarily because of the high number of characters and their detailed descriptions. However, once I remembered who each character was, I was hooked. The story has a tremendous quantity of details. I am firmly impressed by that.
Page 480, unrequited love.
I was hoping the book would end with chronilogical summary of the events yet it didn't. Thankfully, this summary exists online therefore I understood what I didn't understand.
I'm proud I managed to read this book and understand the more extensive portion of it since it wasn't an easy read. I'm glad I read it because it was a personal challenge.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, and Trafficking
Moderate: Addiction, Miscarriage, Sexism, Violence, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Drug use, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Classism