Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

49 reviews

narzibenoucdel's review

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

A great book with characteristic Bardugo strengths of writing and character, but needed to be 100-200 pages longer to flesh out the intricacies and themes to their full potential

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Blood, Misogyny, Sexism, and Torture

Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

theespressoedition's review

dark informative mysterious slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Murder, Religious bigotry, Blood, Infidelity, Antisemitism, and Torture

Moderate: Sexual content, Gore, Excrement, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

aseel_reads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.0

I don't really know how I feel about this? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry and Torture

Moderate: Antisemitism, Physical abuse, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Violence, Sexual violence, Death, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

abeautifulshelf's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful informative reflective sad tense slow-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Religious bigotry

lyraparledor's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Antisemitism and Slavery

Minor: Infidelity, Death of parent, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Torture, Vomit, Islamophobia, Animal cruelty, Infertility, Animal death, Death, Sexual content, Grief, and Rape

jazhandz's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

From a pure craft standpoint, Leigh Bardugo’s writing is at a peak in this book. It’s sensory and rich and compelling. The character work is lovely. Where this book falls flat for me is the relationships - and not only the central relationship, but the entirety of the relationships, romantic and platonic and familial and antagonistic. None of them will stick with me in a meaningful way. Which is a shame! I think if this book had stronger relationships it would be an easy favorite. As it is, it was fine.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Confinement, Torture, and Body horror

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Infertility

Minor: Sexual content, Pregnancy, Vomit, Infidelity, Animal cruelty, and Death of parent

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

3.5

As in typical Leigh Bardugo fashion, the writing and the world building was exceptional. I don't think it quite tops Crooked Kingdom (Bardugo's best book, in my opinion), but it hooked me! The setting was intriguing, and adding to the intrigue was the fact that it's loosely based on her own family's history.

It was a little slow moving for me, and I think it might partly be because I listened to it on audio? The narrator wasn't bad, just wasn't my favorite. There is a good romance at the center of this, and if you like your fantasy a bit dark with a bit of romance, this will definitley be for you!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, and Torture

Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Blood

Minor: War

frmeden's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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? N/A

4.5

picture me reading the ending on the bus with my heart in my fucking throat

leigh bardugooo you have so much talent, it felt like spain was honestly a whole other character in this book and so much love and care was given to every character, no matter how minor, that i was deeply invested in how each of their stories wrapped up

doesn’t quite join the ranks of six of crows but they’re not really the same story so probably incomparable? but it wrapped up so bittersweet and final and lovely. i liked this a lot

santángel you will always be famous and sexy

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Torture, Xenophobia, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, and Body horror

Moderate: Death of parent and Sexual violence

writingcaia's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

Enchanting and eery, magical and dark, with a historical setting that brings to life the horrors and hypocrisy of the Inquisition, the conversion and expulsion of Jews, and the fall of the Spanish Armada, mixing historical facts with magical ones that feel as true as the written down.
Amidst it all there is a girl grieving for a family and a future lost to poverty and inquisition, slaving away, until a casual and common (for her) little chant to fix the bread pushes her to display her magical talents, so intertwined with her past and traditions, driving her to find her lost strength and renewing her ambition - to be powerful, to be unique, to be seen.
Pushed into a political game between King and would-be powers she meets the strange but alluring Familiar, her magic mentor, and her life will never be the same.
A love story and a dark tale with villains and heroes disguised as either, where trust is earned and love stolen from the ashes of a forgotten world.
It didn’t dazzle me but it was still unforgettable!
Can’t wait for more like this from Leigh.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Blood

Minor: War

midnightrose_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Familiar is a beautifully told dark historical fantasy set in the Spanish Golden Age. Leigh Bardugo is a remarkable storyteller who proves with every release why she’s not only one of my favorite authors, but an auto-buy author as well!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, Vomit, Antisemitism, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Sexual content and Cursing

Minor: War