Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Changeling by Victor LaValle

53 reviews

breadscorcher's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This book is as cynical as it is poignant, and as grim as it is loving, and it's hard to put a point on whether the experience is a positive or negative one. Nothing is sacred, and nothing is left unsullied. Friendships, relationships, parenthood, childhood, and every gap thereof is full of weeds and dirt to pick at and display.

If you're looking for something magical, this isn't it. If you're looking for something that ambles along the line of surreality and harsh realism, this is a story for you. If you're the sort of person who finds themself longing for more of the darkest, grimiest, and most forlornly beautiful portions of American Gods, this is the book for you. 
But don't expect the break from those things that Neil Gaiman gives you, this is a story as bleak as history, and as much about the horror of the future as it is about the foundation that that present future is built upon. 

If originality is your prime metric for whether you'll like a book, this has that. Whether or not the originality carries the book or not is subject to debate, but the experience was worth it for me. 
It's unlike anything I've read for a good minute, and as a whole it stands apart from anything I would have read, but it's a beautiful rendition of that. 

Ironically, this book includes several portions dedicated to the last book I finished, To Kill A Mockingbird, and unironically, it seems that the author was in a similar, albeit darker, mood. Race, sex/gender, and class inequality surround the story, but aren't the subject of it, necessarily. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Stalking, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Torture, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Minor: Infertility, Misogyny, Forced institutionalization, and Injury/Injury detail

emily_dunn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Police brutality, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Medical content, and Colonisation

nadiajohnsonbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment

Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

ripxreads's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Stalking

sunflower7skull's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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? Yes

5.0

this book was equal parts charming and horrifying, with tragic bits sprinkled in. highly recommended to anyone who loves folklore and a dark adventure. i think i have to look into more victor lavalle books now

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

megchase's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Mental illness, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

clarkg'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

4.5

As a work of urban fantasy/horror, this book really shines. The worldbuilding is unique, the plot holds a consistent level of suspense, and I found it easy to stay invested in the characters. LaValle makes good use of the classic hero's journey arc to structure his story, which feels like an appropriate complement to the novel's fairytale motif. If you don't mind genre bending/blending, contemporary references, or a few loose ends, "The Changeling" is a gripping and rewarding read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Confinement, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Alcohol

lojwinreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, Kidnapping, and Grief

notthatcosta's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

1.75

While this book wasn’t the biggest slog to read for me this year, it was a struggle to motivate myself to see it through. Ultimately I wanted to see what Victor Lavalle had in mind, which is something. Unfortunately, he had about 20 things in mind.

Unfortunately I found the plot convoluted, the tone confusing, the characters flat and the dialogue trite. The plot had so many aspects that were jarring in the moment and confounding in retrospect. This was made worse by how the tone of the book was both young adult while also being incredibly graphic and dark. This was made worse by the AWFUL pacing. And then this was made worse by the dialogue being so flat and downright cheesy at times. It was all so…American. I think the feeble attempts to commentate on technology (which amounted to about 10% of the book involving someone fumbling with an iPad or posting something on Facebook) were the most egregious part. 

Overall I liked a couple of passages (Victor’s childhood, the island), but for the most part I was rolling my eyes. I’m not a sci fi fan at the best of times and this book sums up why. It was sloppy and fantastical without really achieving any level of awe or whimsy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

ayzil's review against another edition

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail