Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

8 reviews

dragynn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

• 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Violence

angorarabbit's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense 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

Clarketech: antigravity on a macro scale, possible travel to other dimensions. 

 

TLDR: A well written fantasy on the theme of technology vs nature saving the world. 

 

A friend gave me this years ago. I admit that the first book of the story took me a few tries to read due to the almost unremitting bullying the two main characters (mc) experience. Books 2-4 still have the bullying, but to a lesser degree. Despite the novel’s fantastical plot iit s very realistic when it comes bullying and the aftereffects of bullying. 

 

Ms Anders’ characters are well fleshed out and diverse in personality and ethnicity. I was disappointed that there were no lgbtqaa+ relationships. Her two mc are understandable and consistent continuing to grow as the story moves forward. They also, despite their differences, are very loveable, I was rooting for them both despite their divergent goals.Ms Ander’s world building is detailed taking time to describe the plants, birds, and machines so a reader can see them The plot keeps you turning pages as the fate of everything we know lies in the balance. 

 

My only criticisms are first; Berkley is abandoned. This is remedied in the short story Clover which makes more sense if you read it after All the Birds in the Sky. I downloaded my free copy from Tordotcom. The second is there never is an explanation for why the mc’s parents act the way they do. Their actions are so unredeemable I feel there must be some explanation. We don’t get their backstories though. 

 

These are small things and the ending was everything I needed.. I will be reading more from this author. 

 

Thank you Zoey’s mum for this wonderful book. I’m sorry it took my brain so long to read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Suicide

The one chapter containing graphic sexual content (sc) can be skimmed, you do have to read the last paragraph or so which is after the sc. All other sc is brief and not detailed. The bullying can cause serious flashbacks to garbage swirlies in some people.

tinyhands15's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

This book was hard for me to finish, and I think I wanted it to be longer. I loved the concept and characters. Toward the end, though, neither of the main characters felt like they had enough time in the sun to fully ripen. I think there was a lot of unused potential in this story, and the result, for me, was feeling a rush to the conclusion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Forced institutionalization

walkie_check's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Death of parent, Alcohol, and War

Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Chronic illness, Deadnaming, Terminal illness, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

shadestate's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.75

This book was hard to read. So much bullying. So many technocentered decisions fucking up the environment even more. In many ways, it was too real.  Including a Muskrat billionaire treating 80% of humanity and all of the other life on earth as expandable. 

Got through the book by thinking of it as a horror novel. Would not recommend it to friends, as most of us are neurodivergent with a past of bullying, and don’t need to relive that hell again. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Forced institutionalization

lanid's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious

• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Violence

samantical's review against another edition

challenging funny inspiring reflective slow-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

Transcendent and beautiful and magical in all ways!!!! Not what I expected but better by far, this book defies genre and also a lot of conventional book stuff??? Some of the most major plot points happen during time skips, the pacing is somewhat inconsistent and strange, and the narration doesn’t match the characters’ voices but isn’t omnipresent either. And yet?? And yet??? It’s a chaotic masterpiece. I’ve generally avoided end of the world books and I didn’t know this was one tbh but I’m glad because I wouldn’t have read it and I would have missed out so much. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Bullying, Violence, and War

Minor: Emotional abuse

dokushoka's review against another edition

challenging dark funny sad 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, and Cursing

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Drug use, and Violence

Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Grief, Stalking, and Death of parent