Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

30 reviews

clalaure's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Police brutality, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death of parent and Sexual assault

chelseylb1988's review

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Colonisation, Hate crime, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Violence, Xenophobia, and Grief

machenn's review

emotional reflective slow-paced

• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Grief, Pregnancy, and Death

brdietz08's review

emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Hate crime, Racism, Abandonment, Grief, and Racial slurs

kappafrog's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

How eerie reading this in between seeing headlines about book bans in Florida. This was a compelling dystopian novel. I agree with other reviewers that the second half struggled at times compared to the first half.

Spoiler

The conceit of Margaret narrating her whole life to Bird didn't always work when she was going into intimate details which were great for the reader but made less sense as dialogue with her son. I was also disappointed in the lack of information about the aftermath of Margaret's plan. We got a few flashforward glimpses but no information on the political fallout.

The writing was really beautiful. I liked seeing the world through Bird's eyes, a child's perspective in a novel aimed at adults. I enjoyed the use of folktales, etymology, and gardening through out. There were many horrifying bits in the book. I can tell it will stay with me for a long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Blood, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Animal death, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Violence, and Abandonment

Moderate: Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Cursing, and Deportation

Minor: Alcohol, Chronic illness, Medical content, Rape, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Islamophobia, and Slavery

theblushbookworm's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

Wow this book really struck me. I grew up on dystopian novels, and Ng pulls all the best parts of the genre to give a message on Asian American hate, children being taken as a means of control, and the dangers of bystander culture. This novel is powerful, well-written, and a worthy read for anyone.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, and Racial slurs

greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Trafficking, and Xenophobia

katrinky's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

not an easy book to read. imagine the handmaid's tale, but about anti-asian racism and xenophobia. the book touches on linguistics, guerilla art, including yarn bombs, and folklore, so of course I was compelled from start to finish. read it in 1.5 days, both of them work days, so that tells you something about the pace and the ease with which I got invested in bird, his mom, margaret, and their lives under PACT ACT America. chilling, maybe hopeful? mostly wary, and clear-eyed about America's worst propensities.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Colonisation, Deportation, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Grief, Racism, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, and Hate crime

Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Death, and Abandonment

kellyofcali's review

dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

Admittedly, I was trapped on a plane when I read this, but I also read ALL of it in one plane ride - I found it really haunting and timely and beautiful. The author does a wonderful job painting a world close enough to ours where it's quite frightening - it feels like a place we could easily go from where we are now - yet also instilling hope, and hope that comes so much from peace and art, which sings to my soul. Hard, difficult, and yet not totally crushing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Violence, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Grief, and Gaslighting

Minor: Police brutality, Kidnapping, and Forced institutionalization

lorit1227's review

challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Dysphoria, Hate crime, Grief, and Racism