Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

3 reviews

girljames's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

Exquisitely sad and beautiful. Geraldine Brooks is my favourite historical fiction writer. Also this was written pre-COVID, but the various ways the characters responded to an epidemic was spot-on. Made me glad I live in the twenty-first century.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Alcoholism and Abortion

Minor: Slavery

rosalind's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Blood, and Grief

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape, Slavery, Excrement, Vomit, and Religious bigotry

cptnstphy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

Brooks' prose was gorgeous and brought the reader along as if they were right there in the village, such that it was like watching a film (if not for all the grisly and demonic details, I would want to see this film). Despite the reader knowing how the book would generally end (most villagers dead of the plague) she still manages to create suspense and craft a twist ending none could have predicted (in a dazzling, exciting, and satisfying way, in my opinion). The characters were well-crafted, some with unexpected nuance, although our hero was perhaps too Good and without many interesting flaws. Year of Wonders gripped me from beginning to end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Drug abuse, Infertility, Sexual content, Excrement, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Rape and Slavery