Reviews with content warning for Gore - Her Name Is Knight

Her Name Is Knight is a really brutal and dark book which gets 3.5 stars from me. I liked the idea behind it a lot and found Nena to be an interesting character, but the violence was sometimes a bit too much for me, and some moments were a bit too predictable. This book includes many triggering topics, like graphic (sexual) violence and death of parents, so please only read this book if you’re in the right headspace for it.

Nena is an assassin, working for the Tribe, an organization that fights for African countries and diaspora. I find this concept just really intriguing and it’s more morally grey which I liked. On one of her missions, she sees a man she has terrible past with and decides that she wants her revenge. The story is told in two timelines; we see this present time story but also a past timeline where we see how Nena became an assassin. This past of Nena is very brutal and disturbing, and it’s so terrible to think about the fact that these kinds of things probably happen in reality as well. The present timeline is not less shocking and brutal, so be prepared. It was so intense how

she shoots the “wrong” guy

. Besides this, I liked the feminist undertones the story has, like Nena rejecting the term “female” for women, and the thematization of colonialism.

My biggest issue with this novel was how predictable the plot became towards the end. It was so obvious that

Paul is the father of Elin’s boyfriend. I didn’t really understand why Nena didn’t just kill him right there when she’s so ruthless. It was also kinda predictable that the bad guys would kidnap Georgia.

. What shocked me though was the reveal that

that Oliver is her brother. Cort’s and Nena’s breakup was sad but also understandable

. I also loved how emotional the final chapter was.

Nena is a really interesting character and also kinda likable. The struggle of her different identities is quite intense: On the one hand, she talks about killing like it’s nothing but on the other hand, she’s focussed on protecting the weak people. I also think that Nena’s trauma was depicted quite well. Besides this, the cast is all Black which was great. Georgia is such a great addition to the cast and Cort is so likable as well.

All in all, Her Name is Knight is a thriller that deals with topics not every thriller does, and has some interesting characters that I can’t wait to read more about.

Content Warnings

readsandsuch's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.5

Simple plot but entertaining. Audiobook narration was great. It felt a lot like an action movie.

Content Warnings

abookandaspotoftea's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

3.25

Content Warnings

hottiereads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark fast-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

4.5

From the moment Nena Knight was introduced, I was scared of her. She was violent—killing a 20 year old bystander—but also nuanced, minutes later freeing a trafficked teenager. Over the course of the story, we see Nena question, explore, and transform in a way that was enlightening to read. While I could figure out where the story was going, Angoe wrote in a way that made me want to see how Nena got from Point A to Point B. Even with a somewhat formulaic plot, Angoe delivered a satisfying ending with a message of healing, redemption, and second chances.

Content Warnings

booksnbones13's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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

4.25

i loved following Nena’s journey in finding her power, strength, and resilience after surviving so many horrific tragedies. i was rooting for her the entire time and left so impressed and emotional over her growth. the writing style is also beautifully unique, the switching between 1st and 3rd person for her “Before” and “After” chapters was a phenomenal choice that truly enhanced the narrative journey. the only thing i didn’t enjoy was the romance subplot, it was a little too insta-love for me and it didn’t make sense that Nena would fall for someone she doesn’t know well that quickly, especially considering all of her trauma. i’m interested to see how it will all play out in the sequel!

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