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maladaptivebookdreaming's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I was a little thrown off by her love interest being white, but after reading I realize that in the context of this novel it makes sense. This story although with its horrible twists and turns serves an important purpose: breaking the pattern set up but colonization and historical racism. What starts as a melancholy narration of Sydney’s neighborhood ends with a message of hope and poetic justice. Would definitely recommend to anyone interested!
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Alcohol, Racism, Mental illness, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Violence, Chronic illness, Racial slurs, and Death of parent
yourbookishbff's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Racism, Kidnapping, Confinement, Drug abuse, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Vomit, Alcoholism, Addiction, Grief, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Classism, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
legs_n_chins's review against another edition
- 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
I think this was a very well done mystery-thriller. It kept up a good pace, rolling out all the information steadily without leaving me hanging or feeling like too much was dumped at once all of a sudden. It wasn’t exactly about trying to figure out the answer so much as how everything was connected and what exactly was happening, and I think the author did a good job with that. We know from the start there’s something sinister, but I liked how she gave it more depth and clarity as the story progressed. I liked the characters, though Theo felt a little less explored (and a little more fantastical - some suspension of disbelief required on my part, I felt) than Sydney, and I think even the side characters were really written well and given a lot of thought and care. The story itself was compelling and very freaky, especially with the interplay of the real lived experiences of black people in America. I also really liked the real pieces of history the author worked in, I thought that was very cool.
While I think it’s a very solid story with a good wrap up, I did feel that the final quarter of the book was a bit weaker. I felt like there were a few too many “gotcha” scenes that were tense for all of a few pages before smoothing out very quickly. I get why they happened, to help finish explaining things or tie a couple final events together, but they took me out of it a little because it felt like artificial tension made up just for an extra jolt in the last few scenes. A couple stylistic choices in the writing also didn’t always work for me, but I think that’s down to preference. Some word choices or phrasing took me out for a sentence or two, but very easily looked past as the writing style was overall very good and engaging.
Graphic: Gore, Police brutality, Racism, Death, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, Medical content, and Domestic abuse
clarkg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Medical trauma, Gun violence, Torture, Stalking, Racism, Police brutality, Murder, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Gore
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Infidelity
mdavis26's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Violence, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Police brutality, Excrement, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Racism, and Sexual content
snd1101's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Death, Blood, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Infidelity, and Slavery
Minor: Forced institutionalization
barefootbetsy's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
The history was fascinating and I have a new appreciation for how difficult (and horrifying) living with the remnants (and current iterations) of slavery and redlining and stolen land must be 😞
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Stalking, Torture, Violence, Misogyny, Murder, Racism, Blood, Grief, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Toxic relationship, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Sexism, Sexual content, and Excrement
helloiloveyellow's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism
Moderate: Classism, Gaslighting, Grief, Addiction, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Confinement, Police brutality, Death of parent, Death, and Domestic abuse
tillysg1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Hate crime, Sexual content, Police brutality, Racism, and Cursing
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Addiction, and Xenophobia
Minor: Deportation, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, and Slavery
One short, but quite graphic sex scene (would be easy to skip if you prefer)bookdragon16's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Racism, Alcohol, and Addiction
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Gun violence