Reviews tagging 'Death'

Milk Blood Heat by Dantiel W. Moniz

23 reviews

januaryapril's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-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

4.0

A great short story collection. I felt like all of the stories were strong in their identity and clear what they were talking about. So often I read short stories and feel like I have no clue what is going on but these stories give you some mystery and hidden meaning but not so much that you feel lost. The stories were darker than I expected (I think I didn't really read the blurb though lol). Many of the stories felt like looking at the past for me and the one about pregnancy and the what if of having a baby resonated with me so intensely. The prose was excellent, easy to understand yet powerful and interesting. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Suicide, and Pregnancy

savvylit's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-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

Each of the short stories in Milk Blood Heat are perfectly crafted. The first story, about two teen girls with a strong connection, is an absolute sucker punch and sets the tone for the rest of the collection. Milk Blood Heat is subtle, reflective, and dark. The folks that populate the stories live seemingly conventional lives. However, Moniz ultimately highlights character flaws in each of them to devastating effect. Readers will find themselves contemplating human nature and our most grim impulses. What happens if we say yes to that voice in our head? What if the choices we've made have already set us down a path we don't want? What if the people we trust betray us?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Sexual harassment, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Violence, Pregnancy, and Grief

goodin10tions's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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

2.0

I wasn't prepared for the triggers in this book and that's on me. There are such thoughtful stories and powerful writing here however I suggest that you educate yourself before you jump into this one! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, Rape, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Incest, Miscarriage, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body shaming, and Death

Moderate: Racism and Racial slurs

nialiversuch's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Infertility, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Suicide attempt, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Ableism, Violence, Rape, Child death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Fatphobia, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexual content

bookswithgeorgia's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Infertility, Rape, Self harm, Terminal illness, and Toxic friendship

____emily____'s review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Suicide, and Death

Moderate: Self harm

mackenziebrill's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad 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: Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Miscarriage, Suicide, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Child death, Suicide, Child abuse, Death of parent, Death, and Cancer

Minor: Sexual assault

mikki44's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, and Racism

woolgatherer's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

This was a fresh collection of short stories that hones in on the everyday lives of Black women (primarily) in Florida and, often, the way they are viewed by society. The protagonist of each story essentially have to reckon with a traumatic event that occurred at some point in their life (or is dealing with at the moment), and Moniz explores this unflinchingly though also with some grace. She dives into uncomfortable territory when it comes to the topics she covers: infidelity, sexual assault, pregnancy/miscarriage, among others. For the most part, I wouldn’t say that these stories are gruesome, but none of them are particularly easy to digest either as she peels away the layers of these women to reveal something deeply complex.

I found the title of this collection particularly interesting and, very cleverly, Moniz interprets at least one of those three words in some fashion within each story. I think “blood” jumped out at me the most, but that might be because this was more visceral than the others, especially in the final story (which was probably my favorite). Relatedly, Moniz is an excellent writer and really has a way with words to draw a reaction out of you. I think despite feeling lukewarm about some of these stories, I was taken to all of them because of her writing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, and Sexual assault

Minor: Cannibalism and Infidelity

samantharosejohnson's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• 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? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Grief, Death, and Child death

Minor: Sexism