Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman

32 reviews

cassie7e's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Wow, this one really tugs the heart. Was not expecting such an end! Pullman does not pull his punches, so the stakes feel high and real, and wounded characters properly suffer their wounds. 

Faves:
- Love the dark matter element making this 2% sci fi
- CATS! Will's affinity for them means we get to see them a couple times
- I still do not know who to trust, or if any side besides the children's is good


Critiques:
- Pacing was slow so it took forever for anything to happen
- Lyra's deference to Will felt jarring after the strong personality established in book one
- The world seems to be congealing around one real God figure and only considers judeochristian mythology in the formation of theology and universe, which is just not that interesting to me
- VERY dark for a children's book; then again I read a lot of dark things as a kid and they went over my head way more than they do for me now as an adult who knows what to feel about dark events

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Animal death, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Blood

Moderate: Suicide and Torture

Minor: Murder and Kidnapping

ladythana's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Gun violence and Mental illness

Minor: Death of parent

thehobbitbarbie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Blood, Child death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Gun violence, Mental illness, War, Bullying, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Classism, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Death, Sexual content, and Violence

deliriah's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Blood, Gun violence, Death, Torture, Suicide, Death of parent, and Mental illness

atalea's review against another edition

adventurous 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Death

Moderate: Animal death, Death of parent, Suicide, Torture, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: War

gentle_garbage_baby's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

5.0

I love this series. Will is a fantastic addition to the cast of characters and the universe is greatly expanded upon throughout the book. I'm very excited to read the third instalment in the trilogy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Death of parent and Mental illness

fjerda's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

Pullman has crafted an intricate world so beautiful and sinister that I adored the read. Although perhaps not a strong as the first book in terms of plot, the descriptive language is effortlessly and incomparably luscious.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gore, Torture, War, Animal cruelty, Child death, Blood, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Body horror, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Murder, and Violence

abby_can_read's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

📱
This was an enjoyable good. This book was a little darker. I felt this book was like less focused on character and plot development. There was more worldbuilding. I had difficulty falling the plot lines and characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Violence, Animal death, Blood, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Religious bigotry, War, and Body horror

Minor: Mental illness, Gaslighting, and Kidnapping

jadziaaudrey's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Murder, Torture, Death of parent, Death, Religious bigotry, Violence, Animal death, and Child death

Minor: Kidnapping, Bullying, War, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief

aliteraryescape's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent and Blood

Minor: Suicide and Death