Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Colony by Audrey Magee

5 reviews

bella_cavicchi's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I loved this in a way I wasn't expecting, perhaps because the story itself wasn't what I expecting. Understated in its approach, it tells a powerful story of colonisation and heritage and alliance against the backdrop of the Troubles. My friends can attest that I was gasping by the last few pages, unprepared for the wreckage of a simple action.

Perhaps best summed up as a book that has kept me thinking over a week since I've finished it. A good sign!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Gun violence, Death of parent, War, Violence, Grief, Death, Colonisation, and Child death

Moderate: Toxic relationship and Sexism

leo14's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit

Moderate: Blood, Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Animal death, Bullying, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

jennikreads's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, War, Misogyny, Animal death, Murder, Death of parent, and Gun violence

serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

 The Colony is a fantastic read. The more I read the more impressed I became. What starts off as a seemingly simple story about an arrogant English artist spending time on a small sparsely populated Irish island turns out to actually be a multi-faceted critique of colonialism. All the different strands of the novel - the family saga, the master-apprentice artist storyline, the conflicts between different characters, the linguistic study, and more were all cleverly woven around the core theme of colonialism. I was impressed by how many different facets of the author managed to include, most intrinsically. The interactions between the islanders and the visitors are essentially a microcosm of colonialism.

All of which makes this book sound worthy - and possibly dull. Worthy it is; dull it is not. The story is engaging and eminently readable - quite funny at times, the writing lyrical and poetic, the atmosphere often haunting, the characters memorable and in some cases, James especially, loveable. The exploration of the theme is thought-provoking, yet nuanced rather than dogmatic. All in all I highly recommend this novel and will definitely be adding Audrey Magee to the list of authors whose back lists I want to explore. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent

thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition

challenging emotional medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation

Moderate: Grief, Death, and Death of parent