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wei_lan's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
1. Lucifer’s questions and perspectives felt comforting to me because I experienced the same sort of rabbit hole that began as being curious and ending with anger and hatred. I wish I had this book when I was in highschool.
2. I adored Lucifer so much. His initial shyness and curiosity was what really hooked me in. I could see him changing and becoming more confident but being perceived as vain and immodest and it really made me think about the difference between them. Like, why should Lucifer not be proud of his appearance when he is the angel of beauty?
3. I knew what was going to happen but it still tore me to pieces when it happened. I almost stopped reading this when
4. There were a couple of times I zoned out and got lost or confused. Visualizing the angels’ houses was difficult for me and when I read about the on a bed or entering a room I was kind of taken out of the story trying to imagine what a bedroom would look like in heaven for an angel.
5. As far as I can remember, there was not a single female character. I don’t know how to feel about that because I’m pretty sure this was based on biblical canon and I don’t there are any female angels, but having all male characters did make it harder for me to keep track of who was doing/saying what at times.
6.
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, and War
Moderate: Body shaming and Cursing
Self-harm/Suicide attempt:bree343's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Cursing, Rape, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
fanboyriot's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
mermaidadjacent's review against another edition
Graphic: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
c_alexander's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Rape
katbotelho's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
author has a really good way of describing things and made me nauseous when i had to read about the self harm and violence. the beginning is kinda slow but i still enjoyed it. at times it was hard to understand bc there was very little indication of a pov switch but u get used it after a while
left me with a lot of questions at the end like
i guess i’d have to read the second book to find out perhaps. overall i enjoyed it
Graphic: Body shaming, Self harm, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Sexual content, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
starsincline's review
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Self harm, and Blood
ts_anne13's review
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual content, Blood, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Rape
justno's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"I know what the Lord dressed me in and what He handed to me, and inside, I can feel the detail He put into me. And yet, still, I’m so lost. I only want to be useful to Him, but I don’t know how. I want to know what He made me for, so that I can fulfill my role and uphold His splendor, but I don’t know how. It’s devastating to me.”
I would like to preface my review by saying that I was raised Christian, and so my experience really shaped my perspective on this book.
"Angels Before Man" questions the unquestionable: Could God not be good? Could Lucifer have a reason to do all evil? and it completely destroys you, because as you see Lucifer descent into madness and as all of his actions become more and more destructive you both wish to see the inherently corrupt nature in them while at the same time coming up with explanations for all of his actions.
The prose of this book completely destroyed me, it made me feel things I have not felt before with a book (I have around 100 highlights on my Kindle, THAT'S how much I loved it) it painted both the beautiful and bright picture of paradise and also the grim and painful reality of suffering that came with Lucifer's fall.
"Lucifer, quietly, had asked if angels were also made in pairs. “Angels are perfect,” He’d replied, “they are whole, and they are eternal.” There was no need for them to devote themselves to anyone but their Father."
Lucifer and Michael's relationship is beautiful, there's a clear connection between them, an understanding, and a desire that's doomed from the start and even when everything was falling apart their love, or the remnants of it were the only thing still standing.
In my very personal experience I related to Lucifer sometimes, his questions were questions I have asked before, his anger I have felt, his confusion I understand. And in a way I also understand Michael, his duty and the truth that holds him down, no matter how much he loves Lucifer his existence is dependent only on God.
Also I read this during Holy Week, and while at church, which is a little funny in retrospect
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Blood, and Abandonment
alicia_ann_reads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
First, it's a queer retelling of Satan's (Lucifer) Falling, which I wasn't familiar with so did a quick google to discover it was mentioned in two books if the Bible.
I'm not a Bible follower, but I imagine that anyone who had any form of religious trauma in their life would find this book incredibly cathartic.
The prose was wonderful, the first half is the telling of Lucifer's life from birth, his struggles with being the centre of attention, the 'angel of beauty", his shame and lack of self confidence... Until he meets Michael, who slowly coaxes him out of that shell. You see a really slow burn romance.
The second half of the book takes that and shows Lucifer's fall, how his worship focus went from God to Michael and how God had punished, and from that punishment the seed and kernel of defiance and hatred grew, how Lucifer coined new terms, created Sin as God created...
It is graphic and gory, and really hard to read at times, but it was also powerful.
The negative aspects: Was a little long. Middle part dragged and in the second half saw an increase in internal dialogue; which in and if itself is not an issue but the way it was presented on page was really difficult to read.
You had internal dialogue between apostrophes butted next to external dialogue in quotes with no delineation; and multiple POVs back and forth on one page.. I had to read slowly.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol