Reviews with content warning for Lesbophobia - Martyr!

Reviews tagging 'Lesbophobia'

char_a_lot_te's review

challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.75

im going to give this book 4.75 stars because i feel like it deserves it but honestly i dont know how to rate it.

it is, an absolute bloody miracle the way Akbar crams, several lifetimes worth of stories into like 300 pages. i read this book in way fewer sittings than i probably should have read it in and felt a bit dizzy afterwards.

this is a story about… nationality and identity, i suppose. about trying to piece together your identity in a world fractured by borders, conflict. trying to find your place. its about love, family, and of course, Martyrs!

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sadhbhprice's review

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dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

4.5

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savvylit's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.5

Martyr! is lingering in my mind as a series of feelings - Big Feelings (capital letters required). Deep empathy, earnest yearning, fierce commitment to art, sacrificial love, overwhelming grief, intense addiction, self-denial, and most of all, the feeling of being undeserving. Akbar's novel is an evocative and searing story comprised of flashbacks, dreams, and multigenerational perspectives. Cyrus - the primary focus of the novel - is a very complex and intensely loveable protagonist. And the rest of the cast of characters are just as complex as Cyrus. I could probably write pages and pages about each of them but you ought to just read the book to find out for yourself!

Ultimately, I would eagerly recommend Martyr! to anyone who has ever felt themselves to be on an existential quest. Or to anyone who has felt absolutely overwhelmed by the cruelty of the world around them. I think you just might leave this novel with more hope than you'd had beforehand; I know I did.

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elizabeth_henry's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.25

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evanlorant's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

this book is so full of beauty and vibrancy and love; it’s what i wanted from every sad girl novel i’ve ever read. the characters felt real and justified in their actions with beautiful development that you can feel, not just see. the writing is also so fantastic, full of devices that are so creative but make perfect sense.
the construction of the novel was interesting, it made the book imposing with many small three page sections bracketed by blank pages and section breaks. it broke up the flow a little bit, but didn’t have a huge impact on my reading experience.
overall, the book felt really well conceptualized and i feel like it followed through on the huge question it sought out to answer.

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libbylou1201's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
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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torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

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

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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Martyr! is the story of Cyrus Shams, a young Iranian American man whose mother died when her plane was shot down over Tehran by the United States. He’s a newly sober poet whose desire to write a book about martyrs takes him to a Brooklyn art gallery where a terminally ill Iranian-American woman is living out her final days. A beautifully written, philosophical book exploring what makes a meaningful life and death, and also has interesting things to say about being part of two sometimes conflicting cultures and the making of art. Lots of depth with multiple points of view, some epistolary elements, and quite a few side stories, as well as unexpected twist towards the end.

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