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A review by oliverreeds
The Ones We Burn by Rebecca Mix
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.0
alright! lets get into the complicated mess of this book. when i first started it mmm. one day ago i had no idea abt the controversy until by chance i looked at the reviews and saw RACISM and ANTISEMITISM. i said hmm. that does not sound very good and look up what was happening but found very few examples online of anything so i turned to the comments section just to know what i was getting into. when reading abt the reverse racism i was a bit skeptical, but i saw someone explaining how, while in-world race isnt a social factor, the only bipoc characters are the same — the ruling class who are delightfully ignorant of whats happening in their city and have to be informed by an oppressed white woman. now i personally am not 100% this wasnt a misguided attempt at showing unjust government and how marginalized social groups get fucked over by the system but… why then were these two the like only bipoc characters? we couldnt have had an oppressed witch bipoc?? for some reason the answer is no.
SPOILERS BELOW
now lets get onto the antisemitism which i consider the more blatant issue. so there is a character who is reptilian in nature — hidden actually as his reptilian self — who left his reptilian homeland because they were creating biological warfare inoculations against the lower class of witches… now. wow. thats already a lot to process. and to those of you who know things abt conspiracy theories, you know that they all basically end in antisemitism including the “secret reptilians are ruling the government” shabang. so. this subplot feels like a CRAZY blatant dog whistle to these conspiracy theories. now you might be saying well HE was a good character who changed for the better, and i would say yes. hes quite well-rounded but. the implication in this book is that he betrayed ALL of his people. that he is the ONLY one who realized what they were doing was wrong. which to me,,, again makes me think hmm. that seems a little coded.
SPOILERS ENDED
now lets say this wasnt all on purpose. how should we react? well, first off we need to hold the author accountable. say hey, this is kinda fucked will you make a statement my guy? but MORE importantly we need to call out the publishing firm for a) not hiring sensitivity readers or b) not hiring very good sensitivity readers.
aside from that crazy shit this book was a good debut. the characters were compelling, the plot was interesting, but the message was insanely heavy handed which was a little frustrating.
anyway, rating zero stars for racist shit and antisemitic nonsense that could have easily been avoided
SPOILERS BELOW
now lets get onto the antisemitism which i consider the more blatant issue. so there is a character who is reptilian in nature — hidden actually as his reptilian self — who left his reptilian homeland because they were creating biological warfare inoculations against the lower class of witches… now. wow. thats already a lot to process. and to those of you who know things abt conspiracy theories, you know that they all basically end in antisemitism including the “secret reptilians are ruling the government” shabang. so. this subplot feels like a CRAZY blatant dog whistle to these conspiracy theories. now you might be saying well HE was a good character who changed for the better, and i would say yes. hes quite well-rounded but. the implication in this book is that he betrayed ALL of his people. that he is the ONLY one who realized what they were doing was wrong. which to me,,, again makes me think hmm. that seems a little coded.
SPOILERS ENDED
now lets say this wasnt all on purpose. how should we react? well, first off we need to hold the author accountable. say hey, this is kinda fucked will you make a statement my guy? but MORE importantly we need to call out the publishing firm for a) not hiring sensitivity readers or b) not hiring very good sensitivity readers.
aside from that crazy shit this book was a good debut. the characters were compelling, the plot was interesting, but the message was insanely heavy handed which was a little frustrating.
anyway, rating zero stars for racist shit and antisemitic nonsense that could have easily been avoided
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism