knitted_bookworm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
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
4.0
azaera's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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? Yes
5.0
readily_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Captivating read about difficult subject. Lots of graphic and difficult to read parts. It felt rich with detail and the plot made me want to know what happens. Disappointed by the ending at the very end as left things open to interpretation which can be good but felt a little letdown after the hard slog of reading more than 400 pages and not being clear on what happened.
dana_atkins's review against another edition
challenging
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Honestly it was really disturbing. I stuck it out because I love this time period in history, but my goodness there were some hard parts to get through and once where I had to stop altogether and skim the next couple paragraphs.
sarah_liest's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
fdale's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
4.75
I thought this was a really good book. I loved the way the narrative was written, I suppose technically very slow-paced because of how much detail, but I found myself really drawn into it all and read it pretty quickly. Incredibly sad, vivid, graphic, and violent at times, but really well done, and an interesting time period and a perspective that isn't written often. Only reason I took off 0.25 is the ending was so oddly abrupt and unexpected, I'm still confused. It was like he got to the end, realized he had a deadline, and had to quickly put in two pages to end. I had to flip back a few times to make sure I didn't miss anything. But ending aside, it was a good book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Slavery, and Child abuse
azlanm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Rape, Violence, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Abortion
leigh_ann_15_deaf's review against another edition
4.0
This was very slow paced and chock-full of historical context (my preference!), and very graphically violent as well. I loved the descriptive narration and the brief philosophical interludes by the now-adult narrator, but there was so much missing, or lost. It feels incomplete, a bit of an abrupt ending that skewed the grim tone of the novel.
relthelittlemerm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
niamhoraw's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence and Child abuse