Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon

45 reviews

hilmi's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.25

This is an excellent book overall. The plot and world building is enjoyable though the magic system was... Meh? And that's important to me. Some twists I didn't see coming (at least not fully) kept the book interesting throughout. The world building could have been more thorough as well. 

Even though I'm always attempting to be an ally, sometimes the outright anger to/hate for cisgender or straight-identifying characters made me have a visceral reaction and I almost dropped the book because I wasn't in the mood to absorb the anger. Then I realized: a) that's a privilege (that I can choose not to be angry) and maybe it would be worth working through my aversion - and it was worth it; and b) historically, trans characters in particular and lgbtq characters at large have been depicted in pretty vile ways so turnabout is fair play. 

So, come for the good fiction and the feels. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Sexual harassment

ryankaybee's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense 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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Transphobia, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

katieandkiri's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective tense 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

4.0

Most of this read I had a really difficult time liking the main character, but once he became more self aware (which in my opinion took too long) I finally got into it. I really loved so many aspects of this book like the relationship between Briar and Wyatt, Emyr is an absolute sweet heart and hottie, and rolling over the complexities of the world they live in. It was just really hard to get over how frustrating it was to read Wyatt’s perspective.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Antisemitism, and Murder

Minor: Transphobia

sglance9's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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: Death, Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Bullying, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Violence, and Police brutality

Minor: Infertility and Colonisation

hobbithopeful's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

Magic, witches, queer characters, The Witch King has it all. H.E. Edgmon's story goes to dark places, but shining through each page is hope and a chance that things will get better. Wyatt is a transgender witch who thought he was free from the world and machinations of the Fae. Reality comes crashing down when his fiancée, Emyr discovers where he has been hiding and demands he return to marry him so he can ascend to the throne. Wyatt wants nothing to do with the cruel world he left behind, one that treats Witches like lesser beings and even typically will throw away witch babies that are born. Please be kind to yourself and check the triggers before reading because this book deals with heavy topics centered around healing from trauma, transphobia, and homophobia. Edgmon uses the symbolism of Witches and Fae to parallel what it is like to be queer in our world. There is so much discrimination that Witches face, and while some realize that they are all the same and should get along, others bully and hurt anyone they perceive to be too different.
I love when a main character is one you want to root for, and Wyatt is no different. Messy as he is, as flawed as he is, the growth and realizations he goes through on his journey of finally confronting his past was so beautiful to read. I felt his helplessness as he felt so lost and powerless, unable to control his future or his fate. His love for his best friend Briar was so warm to read, a welcome respite in the often difficult to read situations they found themselves in. I also found myself enthralled with all of the vivid and diverse character descriptions, every Fae and Witch had such a unique appearance it made me want to learn more about them and their lives. The Witch King is at its heart a story of fighting for what is right, and dealing with past shame and trauma. Although heavy handed at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it anyone looking for a fantasy queer read.
The Cover
Inkyard Press's covers are often hit or miss with me, but this one I quite like. Briar and Emyr pose on the cover, looking off into the sky while Wyatt appears to be stepping over and into foreground. The symbolism pertaining to perhaps him stepping into another world, hands out tentatively as if unsure what he will find. I love getting to see what the characters look like, especially Emyr's design. All his necklaces and jewelry add so much to the movement and composition. That being said I would have liked to have seen Briar with flowers woven through her hair, as is often mentioned in the book. Overall the color patlette is very cohesive, and I love the look of it. Though if I had to nitpick I wish the cut off for the white shape was lower, and not cutting the cover in half so much. 
The title font and cover works really well with the cover scheme, but the author font and blurb look a bit out of place and I don't think it matches the rest of the piece at all.
Cover art by Ryan Garcia 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Transphobia, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Violence

Minor: Sexual violence

lyd41's review against another edition

adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted slow-paced

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

4.0

This was a super fun read. The protagonist is hilarious and I love the inner monologue from this writer. Literally I was laughing the entire book. Even with how funny it was,  the plot and characterizations never suffered! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

Moderate: Transphobia, Vomit, and Police brutality

Minor: Genocide, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, Stalking, and Pregnancy

karcitis's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Deadnaming, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Vomit, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Dysphoria

aexileigh's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Deadnaming, Death, Racism, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and War

carolined314's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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

3.0

Glad to have a transman star who was not at all interchangeable for a cis one, in a detailed fantasy setting. A bit challenging by how much trauma was worked in, in what seemed like a romance-type book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Police brutality, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Transphobia, Classism, and Deportation

theblerdnewsletter's review

slow-paced

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

2.0

This book is terrible. Reading AAVE by a non-Black author in 2022 is completely ridiculous. Are you serious? Ugh. Wyatt’s internal voice is annoying and repetitive. There’s not any significant character development (or real plot development, just lots of teenage angst) and it’s creepy reading about

literal teenagers having sex

. I just skipped that part. I think the

Fae being from another planet is a really cool idea but the execution was abysmal

. Also we’re not going to address Briar & Wyatt’s super toxic relationship? Or the fact that Wyatt needs a lot of therapy. I am sad

Wyatt and Emyr kind of don’t end up together

but also it’s probably a good idea because their relationship is also super toxic. Y’all love each other. Come on. 10/10 wouldn’t recommend. I want my 12 hours back.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Murder, and Abandonment

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism