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jelliclejules's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Eating disorder, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Medical content, Stalking, and Alcohol
Minor: Cursing, Genocide, Infertility, Miscarriage, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and War
corsetedfeminist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If you’re keeping a spreadsheet, yes, this book also made me cry.
I’m not sure how to write a review for it, because it defies my normal method of writing reviews and I don’t want to spoil certain very startling plot points, but I shall try.
I really liked the growth of Harrow’s character in this and I found myself identifying with her a lot as someone who grew up in religion and then suddenly started deconstructing it all. The constant question of what is real or not in this book makes it both rather confusing to read but also riveting, and Harrow’s struggles with mental illness and hallucinations is handled realistically- gently by those who love her, and as another way to manipulate her by others. (Ianthe, when I get my hands on you, you’re going to regret being the surviving twin) I loved Harrow in the last book, but I came to love her even more in this one- she is deeply, deeply flawed, but also deeply broken and simultaneously trying to be better, even when her methods are… questionable.
The plot itself is complex and confusing, but also grabs you by the throat and drags you along in a way that cannot be escaped. I’m still a little unclear on all of the relationships that are detailed in the last few chapters, and I’m pretty sure I need a spreadsheet, but the story manages very complicated and obscure worldbuilding while preserving the atmosphere and drive in a way that keeps the story moving forward.
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, and Fire/Fire injury
arysuh's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Pour l’instant, c’est pour moi le plus difficile à lire des trois publiés à cause des thèmes abordés de ce qui arrive à Harrow, de ce qui lui est infligé.
Et dire qu’on pensait dans GtN qu’elle menait sa barque ! 😅
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
ladythana's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Self harm, Medical content, Dementia, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Dysphoria
Minor: Body shaming and Colonisation
shottel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Outside of the deep themes of regret, loss, absence, grief, and psychosis, there is much to say positively. Harrow manages to pull off pop culture references and memes humorously, without making me want to throw the book across the room. (Minimally spoiling example: A subtle joke invoking none pizza left beef.) This, combined with a tamer but still present version of the sense of humor that made Gideon distinctive makes for an enjoyable time. It doesn’t lag so hard in the first half like Gideon does (although I do feel it could’ve likely been shortened a good 50-100 pages). The ending was exciting, the payoff for working through over 400 pages of confusion (albeit a well-written 400 pages) deeply worth it. My only gripe is that, without spoiling anything, the last 5 or so pages are a bit confusing and sad in a way I don’t think fits, but this doesn’t harm it enough for me to say the ending was anything but excellent.
Overall, I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who has read Gideon the Ninth and would be interested in a good mystery or an evocative portrait of disturbed mental faculties.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Dementia, and Pregnancy
iane_reads'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
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Eating disorder, Genocide, Sexual content, Suicide, and Cannibalism
Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Chronic illness, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Dementia, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and War
underabrig's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, and Dementia
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: War
possibilityleft's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
erebus53'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
4.25
There are times where I wish I was capable of reading proper, honest to goodness, paperback books, but seeing as I'm bound to Audiobooks due to my infirmities, all I can say is OUCH.
Tamsyn Muir writes with a sensual love of words, that does not make the content of her prose accessible to most people. To say it plainly - she uses big words, and weird words. a lot. I am well at home in anatomical and psychological textbooks, and literary critique; one of my friends suggested that in conversation with me it would be easiest to carry a notebook to write down all the odd words I use to look up later... and even _I_ needed to read this with a dictionary nearby. It seems quite clear that the author was mauled or possibly traumatically wounded by a feral thesaurus as a child.
I'm sorry, Moira Quirk. Your work on this audio narration was ok, but you fail to catch the Kiwi parlance. It sounds SO weird to hear kiwi idioms in your accent (we don't pronounce a$$ like that) and your attempt at te reo Māori words was wince-inducing. Thankfully that was only one line.
I'm doubling down on my comparison from the first book. This is definitely like an anime. Great chunks of this book feel a bit like watching Neon Genesis: Evangelion. A good proportion of the narrative is in second person perspective, which definitely leans hard into the claustrophobic and unhinged aesthetic. You spend the first half of the book trying to figure out why things in this book don't tally with the happenings in the previous book. That was kind of cool and didn't leave me feeling anywhere near as confused as I thought I would. There were enough breadcrumbs to keep me from feeling too lost in the woods.
Upside of the audiobook was the similarity I was amused by in the fast travel; I was reminded of Douglas Adams's, Hitchhiker's Guide, specifically his description of hyperspace, and the Infinite Improbability drive. "The River" having weird brain melting effects on a backdrop of a woman's voice calling out time-stamps felt so much like HHGTG with Trillian in the Heart of Gold.
Many twists and turns, the reappearance (in various forms) of characters who were bumped off in the last book, the list at the front of the book of the dramatis personae (alive and dead) being actually useful, and a sense that you still don't know quite wtf is going on.. all leads me to think that the third book could go either way in my estimation. I'll have to see what it's like.
Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic friendship
Minor: Miscarriage
ithladin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Dementia, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail