Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Bianca Torre Is Afraid of Everything by Justine Pucella Winans

10 reviews

jacemchale's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny mysterious tense medium-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

5.0

When I finished this book I did "clutch it to [my] chest and think... finally, a book for the anxious queers with a sense of humor" and I loved every second of this book. I especially think that if I had found this book when I was closer to Bianca's age it would've hit even closer to home.
Bianca Torre is afraid of everything, and there's nothing more relatable. We never stop being afraid of everything, it's about continuing on despite the circumstances, and this book manages to impart that message while also being hilarious. This book is great for a range of ages, and queer fearful adults can also get a lot catharsis out of this book.
The humor, the topics (birds, theatre, anime, lesbian sheep, etc), the mystery, are all so engaging.

I'm really overjoyed that I found this book that my library recommended in a "blind date with a book" as having "a surprising amount of birds". There was a surprising amount of birds, but also it brought me a lot of unexpected joy to read something like this.
This book found the right reader ❤️

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Stalking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Drug use, Racism, Suicide, and Vomit

ashylibrarian's review against another edition

adventurous 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

4.25

Bianca Torre Is Afraid of Everything is so much more than a murder mystery. Justine Pucella Winans has crafted a unique storyline with funny, important, and meaningful themes and discussions. 

Bianca works through their fears and questions and challenges who they want to be. Oh, and while doing this, the author throws in a slightly absurd, birdie murder mystery that Bianca witnesses and  is now determined to uncover. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Murder, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Violence, and Kidnapping

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious 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

4.5

Oh, this was a delight. A little bit of a campy thriller, with Bianca figuring out their identity and learning to live with their fear and anxiety. Realizing they aren't as alone as they thought they were. I loved that it felt like this book didn't take itself too seriously, really allowing the characters to shine through. And there's a cute little romance too!

Bianca is definitely the star of the show, but Anderson is a close second. The best friend, and his family becomes like a second family to them. I would definitely read more adventures from them fore sure!

Also, highly recommend the audiobook. Vico Ortiz (from Our Flag Means Death) narrates it and does a fantastic job!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Kidnapping, and Dysphoria

Minor: Drug use and Suicide

gxbi's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Gun violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Mass/school shootings, and Stalking

emily_mh's review against another edition

hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

Unfortunately I wasn’t super engaged or captivated by this one because of the writing style. The author treats the reader as if they can’t think for themselves; for example, they’ll over-explain a joke, include unnecessary commentary, etc. It just felt too clumsy. Because of the writing style, the overall book was so bloated. Scenes went on for too long and there were scenes that didn’t need to be there at all. It could have been way more investigation-focussed. 

The character development in the MC Bianca was well done, however. The anxiety rep was thorough and it was cool seeing them facing their fears. I also liked seeing them build up their little social spider web of support - very sweet. I do wish Anderson had been given more of an arc; there was room for it regarding his shame around anime but this didn’t go anywhere meaningful. 

I thought the romance was cute! It really encapsulated the shyness of young love, and didn’t distract from the story which was appreciated. I also loved how many times the word lesbian was used. 

But despite these positives, it always came back to the writing style which I never clicked with. 

Rep: lesbian nonbinary MC w anxiety, pansexual Chinese-American LI, queer Black SC, Black trans SC, Black bisexual nonbinary minor character

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder

Moderate: Cursing, Gun violence, and Violence

Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Cancer, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual content, Suicide, Transphobia, Blood, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Moderate: fainting Minor: menstruation, divorce, internalised misogyny

citrus_seasalt's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Gun violence, Blood, and Dysphoria

Minor: Drug use and Suicide

pinesandpages's review against another edition

5.0

This review is essentially a list of things I liked a lot. Vibes off the chart for this book. Highly recommend, tho it’s weird and quite niche. 

Lots of little great moments:
•great chapter titles
• The lesbian sheep explanation and then throughline  
• watching Anderson and Bianca get closer and deepen their friendship. He’s a great friend and I also liked the Coleman family dynamics 
•The fact that they dubbed it “Feathergate” 😂
• Lots of great little amusing asides from Bianca’s POV. I enjoyed the incorporation of Bianca’s numbered fears scattered throughout, that was a fun addition. 
• I also like watching Bianca start the process of figuring out their gender. 
• Also obviously I like all the birding moments, that’s what drew me in in the first place! 
• I also enjoy that we watch Bianca get braver throughout the book. At first they never wanted to leave their bedroom but even halfway through they started branching out and doing small new things. Baby steps! And then by the end! Look at them go! 
• This books combines a deep interest in a lot of weird things: birding, anime, Shakespeare, gender identity exploration, thriller, cults, etc. Not that gender identity exploration or thrillers are weird, but with all of those things combined, this book covers a lot of ground but never in a way that is too much or leaves anything hanging.  

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

stephmcoakley's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Biphobia, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

libraryraven's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder

lettuce_read's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Kidnapping, and Dysphoria

Minor: Drug use, Suicide, and Pandemic/Epidemic