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lokes's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Minor: Dysphoria
ribbenkast's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
On top of this, the book is just so well written. The characters are lifelike and complicated, the plot fits tightly together, the prose is strong. Everything is just done right.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
rainbopagn's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.75
SPOILERS in
3
2
1
I am more than a little pissed that Thurwar killed Staxxx. I had expected them to go out together, mortally wounding each other. I understand the meaning of the full circle moment but it still annoyed me.
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Medical content, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction, Cursing, Drug abuse, Infidelity, and Medical trauma
fatimaelf's review against another edition
- 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
And — respectfully — it kind of ruined my life. In a way that I will recommend to any person that asks, because I think it was so good and so important to read. To be completely honest, it wasn’t a book I necessarily wanted to pick back up to read again, or one that I wanted to continue reading, because of how distressing and sad it was, but it was a book I couldn’t stop thinking about the entire time I was reading it. And I mean that in the best way.
Graphic: Confinement, Misogyny, Racism, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Mental illness, and Suicide
Minor: Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Injury/Injury detail
emily_koopmann's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Ableism, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Classism
jalexpulliamkepler's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Car accident, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Chronic illness
noodlebooknook's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
4 stars in some execution
4.5 stars to call it even
Let’s start with the good:
- the concept is very very good, I mean death games at this point I thought couldn’t be re-invented but this felt familiar yet fresh
- the main characters were so loved I almost cried multiple times it was so real and raw
- the author was very good at embodying all of the different POVS each one felt very separate and original
Some small criticisms:
- the POVs shifting without explicit chapter names for each character can be a little jarring sometimes I wasn’t sure if we were in the story of someone in the games or someone in the outside world
- some of the POV chapters were a little boring, like some chapters would have a rich back story while others I found myself not as invested in
- the changing sometimes between current and past events were not super clear and sometimes made a little confusion in the narrative, chapters as dates or names I think would have cleared me up
Overall I think this book is an amazing read and says so so so much about current prison systems and neo-slavery while in a fiction setting a lot of this book is very very real.
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Xenophobia, and Abandonment
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Gore, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Car accident, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
cantfindmybookmark's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Confinement, Gore, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, and Police brutality
Moderate: Ableism
thedreammachine's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Suicide, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, and Classism
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault