Reviews tagging 'Hate crime'

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

9 reviews

anna_brawn's review

adventurous funny 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Hate crime, Murder, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny

Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Rape, and Police brutality

Minor: Suicide and Miscarriage

yuyuv's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Infidelity, Medical content, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Infertility, Abandonment, Drug abuse, Ableism, Addiction, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer

rachel_hoey's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infertility, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Death, Sexual violence, Rape, Murder, Misogyny, Hate crime, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

saurahsaurus's review

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring sad medium-paced

• 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? Yes

4.75

Goodness, I love this book. At times grueling to read when it showcased female trauma in all its myriad forms, but always worth the journey. Beautifully told, fucking hilarious, and impossible to put down. I fucking love this book and know I’m going to revisit it over the years for its universal truths.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Murder, Addiction, Abandonment, Bullying, Classism, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cursing, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Rape, Ableism, Infertility, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, and Body shaming

Minor: Excrement, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicide, and Drug use

emmagreenwood's review against another edition

dark funny informative lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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: Addiction, Alcoholism, Classism, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Child abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Abandonment, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Islamophobia, Alcohol, Sexual violence, and Suicide

amyw2's review

adventurous dark emotional funny informative reflective 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? Yes

4.5

A great read on so many levels. Part comedy, part oftentimes dark drama, woven together seamlessly by a gifted storyteller.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, Classism, Domestic abuse, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Hate crime, Infertility, Bullying, Islamophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, and Suicide

imogenrose97's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense

• 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: Violence, Emotional abuse, Torture, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexism, Racism, Murder, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Rape, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Islamophobia, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Death, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Grief, Drug use, Drug abuse, Body shaming, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Classism, Child abuse, and Bullying

sinslashcos's review against another edition

challenging dark funny 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

It took me a while to feel inspired enough get to pick up this book. However, about halfway through, I blazed through it. I dreaded reading about the violence and the horror, but the dark humor made it more... digestible? It pretty much covers all of the content warnings. I appreciated Getta's dry wit, courage, and also vulnerability. Her experiences with trauma and invasive thoughts resonated with my own and her ways of coping and surviving inspired me. A big theme of the book is "the power of stories" and I'm very glad to add this story to the collection of stories that influence me. Cheers to the female bonobos, here's to taking down the patriarchy together.

One of my favorite quotes from the book:
"Men like him would always look at her and see the things they were glad they weren't: weak, small, timid, powerless. Let them. She'd expended so much energy vying for a broken seat at an uneven table. Fuck it, she'd make her own damn table." (p328)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Rape, Murder, Suicide, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

afi_whatafireads's review against another edition

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

4.0

Parini Shroff wrote a story that is not only entertaining, but depicts the harshness of a society that is still present until today. From the cultures of patriarchy, to the cruelties and abuse in marriages and to the predators that lived in the society.

It took me awhile to really engage with the story, and I honestly had mixed feelings with it, but I feel that the second half of the book saved the story; hence why I'm rating it 4🌟 . For a debut novel, I feel that Shroff did a good job in the sense of relaying the message to the world. Writing-wise, there were a few parts where transitions to each dialogues felt messy; which was one of the problems that I had with the book in the first place. But, I'd learnt to just accept it like reading a Bollywood Soap Opera where the women in the stories are not only extremely flawed, they are also relatable in ways that make you'll laugh at their antiques but also ; its one that felt realistic.

"Despite his words, a question, a request, a demand bloomed in the space between them. She felt certain about the words that fell, but as an automaton, blank and mechanical. She was performing a memorized task, one born of survival, buried upon freedom, resurrected now: "You're right. I'm wrong. I'm sorry.

The Bandit Queens is actually inspired from a real person - Phoolan Devi, in which she was called the Bandit Queen herself. The author took inspirations in which the main character Geeta, looked up to Phoolan Devi, and will always ask herself - What would Phoolan Devi do in this situation . Phoolan Devi is one amongst many that represents the cruel truths of patriarchy and misogyny in India. Its not only saddening, but heartbreaking to know how she had been raped multiple times in her lifetime and beaten at every place that she ended up with.

I feel that in some ways, whilst murder cannot be justified as moral - the desperation of oneself ; in which to endure the abuse, extreme gaslighting and constant demoralisation ; had led to the extreme measures that the characters in the book had taken. Whilst the author had written the book in a way that it was witty and hilarious; the fact that they had to do what they did in the first place was just infuriating. The irony in which the author had shown in the characters - were in their ability to manipulate the situation to their benefit. Not gonna lie, most of the characters in here are pretty insufferable to say the least, but they were also endearing in a sense. I feel that each of the women in this book had a character growth and the kind of camaraderie that had been built by the same source of misery.

Another topic that the author had brought upon was the hardships of motherhood and the obsession for women to mould to society's standards to take the role only to procreate. Its not only saddening that women who didn't have the children were judged and frowned upon, its also sad that the worth of a woman is based on her ability to mother their children. Its one that reflects the world that we live in ; and how this pressure to be 'perfect' in the eyes of society that it can make women to lose their sense of worth. It was heartbreaking to read and it hurts more that its an issue that is still ongoing all around the world.

“Men like him would always look at her and see the things they were glad they weren’t: weak, small, timid, powerless. Let the”

Overall, whilst it took me a bit of time to warm up with the story; and I had mixed feelings for it at some parts, I'd have to say, I enjoyed the forward tone that the author wrote the story. Its entertaining at best, but the issues are forwardly written that it can't be missed. It might put some stereotype to the country itself, as the story is set in India, but I feel that, where each part of women who can relates to the story, no matter where you are, I hope that it can serve as something that can make you be stronger. For ones who relate to Geetha, I pray for your well-being and my happiness comes your way.

Def a solid read as a longlist for the 2023's Women Prize.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Addiction, Abandonment, Child abuse, Hate crime, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Murder