Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Todos los pájaros del cielo by Charlie Jane Anders

5 reviews

clairebau's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I expected to think this book was just okay, and then I went and loved it. I love a coming-of-age story. I love light science fiction. I love stuck-up, idiot-smart male characters and genuinely interesting & feminine female ones. Magical realism is always a bit of a hit or miss for me, but in this case, it was a huge hit. I love a weird ass book. God, this book was weird, but in an off-beat, well developed way. The strength of this book was in its characters and writing style. The plot was just-fine, I guess, but I liked the other aspects too much to care.

My critiques are few. There were too many minor characters with too-few contributions to the story at large. Like with most books, I felt the ending was a bit rushed and not as fleshed out as the beginning (which, in the case of this book, was especially carefully done). Slight deus ex machina at the end, but there was enough leading up to it that I'm not mad about it.

I'd love if this author focused less on plot-ambitious stuff and kept at the coming of age, realistic romance sort of thing, as that's what I thought she excelled at. I'll likely be rereading this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, War, and Sexual content

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Animal cruelty, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, Murder, Stalking, Alcohol, Medical content, Animal death, Grief, Gore, Confinement, Drug use, Body horror, and War

Minor: Vomit, Rape, and Self harm

f18's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Death of parent

Moderate: Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence

Minor: Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and War

gelicoidal's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

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

3.5

In a world where futuristic technology and magic both exist, the heart of the book still beats on the relationship of its two protagonists. There are some dark moments but with its quirky characters and its charming writing, this book was still a delightful experience. I only wish it elaborated more on its ending.

We know that they managed to save the world but how, other than a vague description of what Peregrine and the Tree began doing? What does that saved world look like?  An epilogue would've been nice.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent

vel16's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

So. This book is very interesting for a few different reasons.

1. Its so interesting to read a book about the protagonists failing. Both Patricia and Laurence fail a lot, from the very first chapter - I like this. They are both flawed, very flawed, and whilst I usually don't get on with books with unlikeable protagonists, they're interesting enough for me to want to keep reading about them.

2. Switching perspectives is another thing I don't usually like in books, however it Works here - mainly because whichever perspective we see it from, its still mostly about both characters.

3. It is set in 3 different times - the protagonists as children, teenagers, and adults. This can be done in ways I dont like (such as Song of Achilles) however here I really liked it - the pacing was good, it didnt drag, what was needed to be told was and then the story moved on.

The reason this is 3 stars is mainly because of some weird bits towards the end. I loved loved loved the parts of the book with them as children/teens, but the adult lart of the story just didn'  do much for me. I can't quite put my finger on exactly what the problem was, but it seemed like the story jumped forwards with no context or explanation. I may well have missed something, and I am looking forward to rereading the book in a few years.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Gore, Gun violence, and Violence

Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts