Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

8 reviews

kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? No

4.0

this is one of those books I can’t call “enjoyable” because  frfr it had me sweating and my stomach in knots the whole time. that being said, it was a gripping, sad, informative read. the pacing is surprisingly fast for a book this large, and the plot was very neat.

the speculative and horror elements wove well with the historical fiction aspects, and I really enjoyed how we got a glimpse into so many minds, even if they weren’t always good minds to be in. the way the narrative flowed from one brain to the other was so smooth and satisfying. gloria and robbie were lovely, if tragic :( such sweet, empathetic children in a world where they can sense even more harm than usual due to their clairvoyance. heartbreaking

I also love love love that the author included books in the authors note that tell the true story of the school this novel is based on; it’s clear that she did a lot of careful, tactful research for this book, and wants us to do the same. this is not a light read by any means, but it is a good one 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Child abuse, Grief, Torture, Hate crime, and Gun violence

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Child death, Death of parent, and Child abuse

Minor: Cancer and Terminal illness

streberkatze's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad tense slow-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? No

4.0

This book was a gripping read from the first page all the way to the end. It was challenging at times because of the cruelty and brutality the protagonists had to endure, especially knowing that similar things took place in over many places across the U.S. Both the character development and the way the haints shaped the story were done brilliantly.

Although the question what happened to the caught haints after Robbie freed them sadly remained unaddressed.

The only thing that kept me from giving this book five stars is the at times very slow pace of the story, which has more to do with my own reading preferences and less with the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Racism, Torture, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, and Murder

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Slavery, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

gwenswoons's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad tense 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

5.0

Whew. This was an agonizing, devastating, painful read. But the storytelling and the world-building is unlike anything I’ve ever read, I think. My Dad has been obsessed with Tananarive Due for the last several months - reading absolutely every word she’s written - and I read this since it was the first one he read and started telling me about a while ago. It’s astonishing by every measure: gorgeous writing, unflinchingly  in the telling of history, a vivid point of view all the time. Every possible content warning for this - it is a novel about the Jim Crow south, and the violence and terror permeates every moment. If you have the mental space and the fortitude, it is profoundly worth reading. I listened on audio (truly excellent narration by Joniece Abbott-Pratt), and I had to take big breaks and listen to/read lighter stuff - it’s scary and deeply heavy. I kept thinking it was like if Stephen King (à la The Institute, in the most possible parallel to me) seriously knew how to write (literary fiction), had a real reason for telling the story he was telling, was actually able to inhabit other perspectives. This story is loosely based on/inspired by part of Due’s family history, which includes an uncle who was killed at a similar (real/not fictional) institution in Jim Crow Florida. Anyway - I am grateful to have finished this - emotionally wrecked - but will be thinking about it for a long time and hope you will take the time to read this novel or other works of Tananarive Due’s.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Gun violence, Body horror, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Slavery, Child death, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Blood, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Child abuse, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Body shaming, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Abandonment, Bullying, Cancer, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Medical content, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Torture, Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Classism, and Death

ashtheaudiomancer's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.5

This is my first Tananarive Due book, and everything I've heard about her writing has, if anything, been underplayed.  This is about a "reform school" that is a thinly veiled death camp where boys are sent for minor and/or imagined infractions, and many never get out. It's also haunted, and young Robbie's ability to communicate with ghosts might be his only chance of escaping. Not for the faint of heart, but essential reading for understanding one of the most unforgivable avenues of racism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Child death, and Racism

Moderate: Abandonment, Sexism, Slavery, Police brutality, and Sexual assault

Minor: Terminal illness

Most of the content warnings you can infer from the description, but just be aware they are very much part of the story and you will not be able to skim over them.

thehmkane's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense slow-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

4.0

A very good and important book. While I enjoyed Due's prose, I felt like the pacing took much of the urgency out of the story - the climax moves at a good clip, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Genocide, Abandonment, Bullying, Torture, Hate crime, Gore, Racism, Animal death, Classism, Death of parent, Blood, Terminal illness, Grief, Police brutality, Child abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Emotional abuse, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Antisemitism, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Trafficking, Medical content, Rape, Sexism, Animal cruelty, Slavery, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Pedophilia

eclipse799's review

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Slavery, Terminal illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic friendship, Abortion, Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Violence, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cancer, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, War, and Hate crime

30something_reads's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? No

5.0

 

UM WHAT?? This was incredible.

I did not know what to expect out of this since Historical Fiction is not typically a genre I gravitate towards but, damn. What a masterful blend of history and paranormal. A chilling tale that, although fictional, brings to light the real horrors of the Jim Crow era in the South.

I can't stop thinking about this one line-

And of course Haddock had never hit Colonel. Haddock couldn't train his bloodhound the way he trained the boys.

This audiobook was phenomenal. I would absolutely recommend that listening experience and I will be looking up other works narrated by Joniece Abbott-Pratt. <--- JK. I just realized that she narrated Legendborn (among many others- I will just be bumping some of these up the TBR.)
 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Hate crime, Torture, Police brutality, Racism, Racial slurs, Child abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Slavery

Minor: Sexual assault, Death of parent, Rape, Sexual violence, and Terminal illness

blacksphinx's review

challenging dark tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

If this book doesn't win the 2023 Stoker, I will riot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Grief, Racism, Torture, Child death, Cancer, Terminal illness, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Hate crime, Physical abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gun violence, Confinement, Vomit, Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexism, Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Bullying

Minor: War and Antisemitism