Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

156 reviews

gandalf_a's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

Wow. I didn't really know what to expect from this book other than I had heard much praise for it. I wasn't prepared for it to be that good ! I don't really know how to express how in love I am with this story.

First, I want to say I really liked Jemisin's writing style and the characters' cynicism (especially Syenite's). The second person narration in some of the chapters didn't bother me at all, on the contrary, if found it to be a nice change and also helped me feel closer to the main character.

Talking about characters, I found them all really great, as well as their dynamics. For example, Syenite and Alabaster don't have the kind of romance you might expect in a subplot but their bond takes another, nonetheless strong, form. I applaud Jemisin for risking the unconventional and doing it so well.
Speaking about the unconventional... the world and magic system ! I admire how unique and thoroughly researched it was. Jemisin really succeeded to make me interested in geology 😂.
The three POVs served the mysterious aspect of the story perfectly as it allowed the author to lead the reader step by step (or should I say hint by hint) to the reveals.

(I do want to add that I don't know why I find the cover so mesmerising but I just do... anyone else ?)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Child abuse

Moderate: Child death, Murder, Bullying, Death, and Violence

Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Torture

thirdeyeangel23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

5.0

N. K. Jemisin had me on the edge of my seat from page one. There’s very little I can say that won’t give away major spoilers, so if you love anything fantasy, sci-fi, or dystopian I think this is a must read. The characters draw you in and twist at your heart immediately. There is action, betrayal, and a lot of heartache, but also the potential for so much more. I’m planning to immediately devour book 2!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Physical abuse, Slavery, Child death, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Abandonment, and Confinement

Minor: Rape

cvbattum's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? No

5.0

What an incredible journey. There are so many layers to it that I can't possibly praise them all. The ones that stick out the most are probably the hugely original worldbuilding and the incredibly deep characterization of the protagonists. The writing itself is quite pretty, with a poetic edge to it without being flowery at all, really. 

For all its darkness and apocalypses, it has a surprisingly hopeful feeling to it. There are some nice fuzzy moments of love and peace among the dark. I can't wait to finish the next two books already!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Domestic abuse, Gore, and Grief

Minor: Sexual content

madamenovelist's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, Cursing, Child abuse, Child death, Animal death, Xenophobia, Vomit, Violence, Medical trauma, Death, Rape, Racial slurs, Racism, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, and Blood

emeraldrina's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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

Wow this book was incredibly put together. The way the story unfolds and all comes together at the end is so detailed and intricate and glorious. The world is dark and fascinating and a joy to discover as you read. I was very skeptical about the 2nd person POV at first but I’m so glad I kept reading! The writing is amazing, I love the style and humor and even the little ways Jemisin uses formatting to shape the tone of characters’ thoughts. And I love Syenite so much!! She’s such a badass. I can’t wait to continue the series!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, and Murder

Moderate: Blood, Bullying, Death, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Cannibalism, Cursing, Excrement, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Vomit

delphinaris's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

what the fuck, like actually. There's genuinely so many different moving pieces to this book. I have so many questions, just like, wow. I fucking called it that all POVs were the same person, I knew it. Also Syenite pissed me off so much, like it was just one stupid move after the other. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Blood, Murder, Bullying, Animal death, Alcohol, Infertility, Infidelity, Child death, Abandonment, Cannibalism, Xenophobia, War, Vomit, Violence, Transphobia, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Torture, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Slavery, Stalking, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexism, Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Mental illness, Medical content, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Grief, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Colonisation, Classism, Confinement, and Child abuse

This book is majorly fucked up; especially the scenes in the Fulcrum. Read at your own risk.

the_bees_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

An amazing sci-fi/fantasy book, with characters and worldbuilding that haunted me into getting the second book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Mental illness, Violence, Genocide, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Child abuse, Child death, Racism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Slavery, Classism, Xenophobia, War, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Toxic relationship

discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad 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

5.0

This book is what restored my love for reading as an adult. It’s truly remarkable in every possible way: the characters, the world-building, the story, all of it. I will never shut up about how much I love this series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Death, Child abuse, Slavery, Violence, Gore, and Grief

zombiezami's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

4.75

I was very confused in the beginning, and I’d say I didn’t quite understand what was going on until about 75 percent of the way through the book, but by the end I was very invested. N.K. Jemisin is a genius

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Child death, Gore, Murder, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Racial slurs, and Grief

Moderate: Confinement, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual content, Slavery, Stalking, Animal death, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Torture, and War

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, and Cannibalism

talstrel's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Slavery, Child death, Grief, and Sexual content

Moderate: Sexual assault and Rape

Minor: Cannibalism and Pregnancy

Institutionalised forced pregnancy and rape is a prominent part of the book.

Spoiler

The rape of side characters is mentioned multiple times, and two of the main characters are institutionally coerced to have a child together.