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Graphic: War
Moderate: Animal death, Cannibalism
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Classism
Graphic: Ableism, Violence, Cannibalism
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Suicide, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Parts of the book reminded me of One Hundred Years of Solitude, which I love, but more full-on fantasy epic than magical realism, although it does give that vibe. It's a bit more fairytale like, or rather folk-tale like, in a way. The world building was very unique and interesting, too, based on filipino folklore which is not something I'm very familiar with. The characters were well-built (though I wished we delved more into their interiority and their thoughts), and the ending was satisfying and I love that it's a standalone. Full conclusion in one book babey!!
Now the things I didn't like so much, yeah, it got a bit draggy at some points, especially the "final battle". The action was fine but at some points I was like. Let's get on with the story, please T_T. Also, there are long, vivid descriptions of gore and body horror that felt a bit. Much. Not in the sense that it squicked me, but more so that it got boring after a while, like, sure, yeah, piss and shit and flesh okay, now what. A bit too much like the author was trying too hard to write something shocking or gross. Idk. I just wish we spent more time with the characters instead of this.
Also the whole plot is just a lot of bad stuff happening and I felt there were not enough moments that let me breathe during the narrative. There were some, but they were few and far between and always tainted because you knew there was some shit coming, so at some point the emotional impact of things going wrong got lessened, ngl.
I'd say it's still definitely worth reading at least for what it does well and for the writing, but I understand it might not be everyone's cup of tea.
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence
This was so beautifully written and I’ve never had a book give me insane chills like that ever.
Though I will say, the switching of POVs is a little difficult at first especially within the first 100 pages. The best way to consume it is by annotations, but honestly, you want nothing more than to talk to this text. And it does get graphic, heed trigger warnings.
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Torture, War, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cannibalism, Sexual harassment, War
Minor: Alcoholism
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Cannibalism, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail