Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Octavia E. Butler

5 reviews

gemstonejasper's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.0

This was a great adaptation of the original book. It's been years since I read the original, so I thought I'd pick this up to scratch that itch without having to read all of Kindred again (I'm in the middle of Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis trilogy, so I didn't want to get her writing confused). At first, the art seemed jarring. But the more I read, the more I realized that the art is a perfect fit for the story. 

It's a heartbreaking story that explores Dana's perspective as she is repeatedly pulled into the past to save the life of Rufus, her distant white ancestor. The first time she is pulled back, he is just a child and she saves his life. Each time she goes, he has aged up anywhere from months to years. To keep her family line going, and ensure her own existence, Dana has to keep Rufus alive long enough for his child to be born. But that's not easy. The story gives you no other choice but to watch as a child, innocent as any other, is corrupted by his family, culture, time, experiences, etc., and becomes a disgusting plantation owner.

Don't expect to read this in one sitting. Some books can be read that fast, and some people may be able to do that here. But the horror of the subject matter makes it very hard to read in one sitting. I had to take frequent breaks to process what had happened. But I really loved the story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

canascorner's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• 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: Body horror, Confinement, Gore, Hate crime, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism

zombiezami's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Dementia, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child death, Drug use, Miscarriage, and Fire/Fire injury

aalisahw04's review

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

2.5

I don’t know how I feel about this book. It is a good book, like the illustrations are beautiful, especially the switching between past and present and the different lighting/color schemes. However, I think my main issue was that nothing truly got sorted with and it didn’t feel like there was any actual purpose to the book. The story focused on Dana, who was able to time travel to Maryland, during the 1800s when slavery was still rampant, due to the fact that she was connected with a slaveholder named Rufus. Whenever he found himself being injured, almost to the brink of death, she would show up to take care of him. 

I think the main reason why I’m not as big of a fan of the novel is because it seems so unfinished. Like I understand the ending, but I feel like there’s still things missing. Like why was her and Rufus intertwined? What happens to all of the slaves Rufus owned till his passing? Did they die? What did they think about Dana and how she was able to come in and then disappear as she pleases? And also for Dana, is she still able to time travel? What’s the extent of it? Does she need to be thinking about a specific person for it to happen? I feel like there’s so many questions that was left unanswered in the book because the book decided to end just with Rufus dying. If this is apart of a series then that may be why but I haven’t seen information about that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Pregnancy

Minor: Miscarriage, Rape, and Self harm

olyally's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Torture, Blood, and Kidnapping