Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

8 reviews

minervacerridwen's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious relaxing fast-paced

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

5.0

I've been wanting to read Elatsoe since it came out in 2020 (a couple of weeks before my own ace book!), and now I finally got around to it thanks to my book club. Even after anticipating the read for so long, it delivered. I really hope this will become a new children's classic, because there is so much in this story that I feel is of great value. The way the prejudice against the Lipan Apache people is touched upon, the way the 17-year-old main character is actually believed by the adults in her life when she tells them she is asexual. Those aren't big elements in this story at all, but they are remarkably well done. And then there's the mystery itself, which maintains its tension throughout and yet doesn't leave you hanging at any point because you're discovering just enough new information at just the right times. It reminded me of some of my favourite (Dutch-language) books of my childhood, but with an extra sparkle of magic and so much more soul. And then there's all the cute animals! The way stories are used to transfer important cultural knowledge! The beautiful illustrations by Rovina Cai that add an entire little story of their own to each chapter!
I'm definitely going to read the prequel too.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Racism, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Violence, and Alcohol

throwback682's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad medium-paced

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

5.0

A murder mystery + ghosts and wizards, with a Lipan Apache protagonist who is canon asexual (and I suspect aromantic) and a boy cheerleader sidekick who is shown having both a(n ex) girlfriend, and a YouTube channel where he teaches tumbling and dance moves. 

There are also passing references to other queer characters that feel normalizing, not tokenizing.

(One of the characters, whose life has been irreparably altered, ends the book by moving in with friends - a married couple of women.)

The first half of the book is much slower, the second half is much more action packed. If you’re struggling with the slower start, I’d encourage you to hang in there. 

This book blends together a little bit of everything.

The good guys: an indigenous girl with a strong talent for ancestral magic, a fae boy who travels through fairy rings and his psychic aunt, a vampire who is disliked by his future in-laws, a ghost dog, and a ghost mammoth, among others. The bad guys? A rich “miracle working” doctor (actually an evil wizard), an indigenous vampire, colonizers, and… Teddy Roosevelt?! I love it.

 

I could tell that J had a crush on Ellie the entire book, and she was oblivious. I kept waiting for that to be a plot point, that he was going to confess his love to her despite knowing she’s asexual (and probably aromantic?).   But he never did!! It was so refreshing.

I feel like I could ramble on about this book forever. It has so much good stuff about it and it was exciting and enjoyable. I would especially recommend for young girls (who are old enough for monsters and violence). Ellie is a great role model. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death

Minor: Cancer, Sexual violence, and Terminal illness

pastelkerstin's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, and Racial slurs

Minor: Cancer, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

Police corruption

emily_mh's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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 was such a delight to read!! It really reminded me of the game Night in the Woods. I adored the author’s writing style; the dialogue gave off a real arthouse film vibe which was really unique. But also, she effortlessly wove together so many strands of story and character, but all in the direction of telling a murder mystery?? Masterfully done!! The plot was also well-paced and held my attention throughout. Ellie was a wonderful main character: she was clever, determined, and thought outside the box, so it was really refreshing to read from her POV. Jay as a side character was so much fun, and the friendship between the him and Ellie was joyful. Finally, the illustrations in the chapter headings were absolutely gorgeous, and I loved how they ended up weaving in with Ellie’s storyline.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Body horror, Racism, Violence, Grief, and Car accident

Minor: Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Major content warnings for death of a pet and loss of a loved one. Minor content warnings for drowning, climate change/global warming, drought, insects, mass murder, and divorce.

morganperks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, Xenophobia, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, and Colonisation

Minor: Cancer, Confinement, Gun violence, and Kidnapping

lumorise's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Body horror, Racism, Blood, Grief, and Car accident

Minor: Cancer and Kidnapping

imaginingly's review against another edition

inspiring mysterious 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

4.0

this was an awesome read. it’s a very diverse book with a main plot of solving a murder case and a side plot of friendship between human and dog. there are only a couple things i wasn’t a big fan of: how it kept jumping from stories/ flashbacks to current day without warning; it made the reading a little confusing at times. also, the very last part of the ending. i feel as if it was a good ending as a whole, but the last few pages just didn’t flow well with how the rest of the book was. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Death

Moderate: Racism and Car accident

Minor: Cancer, Gun violence, Blood, and Kidnapping

bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Racism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Gun violence, Terminal illness, and Colonisation

Minor: Cancer