Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Die sieben Monde des Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

62 reviews

joannasomasundaram's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective 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? No

5.0

Beautifully written. Shehan Karunathilaka takes you on a journey through the eyes of a dead journalist as he navigates the afterlife during the civil war in Sri Lanka. This book masterfully illustrates the struggle of the Sri Lankan working class during an era of rampant corruption through humour and wit. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Police brutality, Murder, War, Violence, Torture, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Drug use, Child death, Physical abuse, Suicide, Mass/school shootings, and Genocide

Minor: Car accident, Alcohol, and Blood

helenaeoftroy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Torture, Colonisation, Death, Infidelity, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Alcohol, Car accident, Genocide, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Homophobia, Murder, Blood, and War

danaaliyalevinson's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad 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? Yes

4.0

Set against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan Civil War, this is a surrealist and metaphysical take on a murder mystery in which a ghost must find his killers, protect his friends and boyfriend, and decide whether or not to move on or seek revenge. This book was a wild ride and I largely enjoyed it.

Witty prose. Fun characters. A vibrant world. Karunatilaka also did a great job at bringing us into the backdrop of the war without ever getting us bogged down in it. Sometimes I struggled with the sheer amount of characters (some with multiple nicknames) and also the way the narrative seamlessly moved between the metaphysical plane, the real world, and also flashback. Oftentimes I would find myself needing to go back over pages to resituate myself in the narrative. But overall, it was a good read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Torture, War, Blood, Classism, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, and Violence

jaimeeslitlife's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

"You wake up with the answer to the question that everyone asks. The answer is Yes, and the answer is Just Like Here But Worse."

Meet Maali Almeida: War photographer, gambler, and closeted gay man. Maali wakes in the unique position of being both victim and sleuth in the case of his murder. THE SEVEN MOONS OF MAALI ALMEIDA takes place in the midst of bloody, war-torn Sri Lanka, and while this story is brutal, it is also chaotically tender and beautiful. 

Karunatilaka's writing is exquisite but it did take a minute to wrap my head around - at about 30 pages in I took a deep breath and started over, and after that I felt like I had a much better grasp on what was happening and how the writing flowed. This is a story full of complexities and uncertainties. Life and (at times unsettling) humor exist in the same place as death and horror. There are no 'good guys' - every side thinks their war is justified, and everyone is corrupt. Maali's surreal journey over his seven moons is full of witnessing and sharing and forgetting and losing through memory and photography.

SEVEN MOONS is a mystery, an exposé, a gay love story, and a story about humanity told by someone who is no longer human. This is a tremendous read that I am sure I will revisit and continue to think about for a long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Blood, War, Violence, Torture, Suicide, Physical abuse, Murder, Homophobia, and Gun violence

eileenp59's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Kidnapping, Violence, War, Homophobia, Murder, Gore, Hate crime, Suicide, Police brutality, Genocide, Death, Torture, and Sexual content

Moderate: Car accident, Colonisation, Gun violence, and Child death

Minor: Drug abuse and Drug use

miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

‘They say that laughter is music but that is just one of the thousand untruths we suckle ourselves with. Some laughs are peakened, some are hideous, some can curdle blood.’

‘We must all find pointless causes to live for, or why bother with breath.’

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcohol, Animal death, Murder, Outing, Physical abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Police brutality, War, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Death, Death of parent, Homophobia, Infidelity, Genocide, Hate crime, Racism, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide attempt

edatta's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

Confusing at times, but ultimately moving and painful and introspective in the best ways 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, War, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Homophobia, and Torture

Moderate: Death of parent, Classism, Child death, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Hate crime, Outing, Blood, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Kidnapping, Colonisation, Racial slurs, and Rape

forlorn_traveller's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Blood, Gun violence, and Violence

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, Murder, Kidnapping, Suicide, Infidelity, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Police brutality, Body horror, and Torture

orla_h's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Murder, War, Violence, Suicide, Sexual content, and Death

Moderate: Car accident, Blood, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Homophobia

Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Animal death

cereads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Homophobia, Death, Gore, Violence, and War

Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Colonisation, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, and Confinement