Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

40 reviews

katewhite77's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

A Read You Cannot Forget 

The content is hard to read, but the quality of the writing and the gripping plot made it very hard to put down. 

We follow two sisters as they find very different ways to navigate their way through the Nazi occupation of France in World War 2. Vienne is a proud mother, wife, and rule follower living in the Loire Valley. She refuses to believe that there will be a war at all right up until her husband Pierre is called up.  Isobelle, meanwhile, is eighteen and has just been chucked out of the latest in a long line of boarding schools and is rebellious to  her core. Just as she arrives back in Paris, she is ordered by her troubled and  overbearing father straight back out again to join her sister. We also follow a 1990s timeline of an older woman remembering but wishing she didn’t have to. 

Like I say, this is not an easy read as it does not shy away from the horrors of war waged far from the front line where women and children endured a different kind of hell. The book captures so well how a child's innocence can be so utterly shattered in a war.

Sadly, this novel is all relevant in 2024.  When will the human race learn?

This is easily my book of the year so far, and Kristin Hannah is a new author to me, which is very exciting, and I can't wait to read more. I also recommend this for fans of The Eighth Life by Nino Haratchiwili.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Antisemitism, Cultural appropriation, War, and Deportation

Moderate: Child death, Genocide, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Minor: Cancer

cmason101's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring sad tense fast-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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

estimpert's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Torture, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Outing, War, and Deportation

kwynters's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Minor: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

heyyyyitskatelyn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

Moderate: Genocide

kbrooks11's review against another edition

medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, and Murder

Moderate: Physical abuse, Slavery, and War

sariereads's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, Classism, and Deportation

matildaesandell's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.75

I adored this book. This was a beautiful book about love, survival and heroism during the war. If you love a book about sisters, and about love then this is the book for you. I highlighted so many beautiful quotes about love such as “love is the beginning and the end, it is the foundation and the ceiling and everything in between”. 

The end of this book was perfect in every way, and I don’t often say that. I also like how the mystery of who is narrating keeps you hooked until the end. 

I think upon a reread this book could become a 5-star read for me. It fell short by just a smidge because I felt a bit lost and bored for the first maybe 30% of the book. However, now knowing the characters and loving the characters the way that I do I think I would have the patience and appreciation for it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Xenophobia, and War

Moderate: Sexual violence and Slavery

ladybug12793's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Deportation

acal92's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Deportation