Reviews tagging 'Child death'

I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys

12 reviews

mformato's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.0

An exciting and fast paced story. I had no predictions for anything because it was full of twists and turns. I enjoyed being able to see inside of history, Sepetys really cares about accuracy in her literature. To know that the living conditions of this story were real is heartbreaking. I also like how the story wraps around if you go back to the prologue after reading the end.

Not a full five stars because of personal reasons. I felt like there was a lot of telling rather than showing in the beginning. Also Cristian felt a little too American for the story. Plot points happened a bit too much out of convenience.

But overall I enjoyed the story and would recommend the book to someone who enjoys reading about revolutions, noir, and an undying spirit of hope in a hopeless land.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Stalking, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Death, War, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Murder, Terminal illness, Violence, Gaslighting, and Grief

darumachan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

This is one of those rare books that does everything it sets out to do-- it is at once a gripping thriller, a thoughtful political commentary, and a moving coming-of-age story. Check out the author's note for insight into the connection between historical research and writing a work of historical fiction. I also appreciated the use of Romanian language in some of the dialogue and the chapter headings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Terminal illness, Violence, Child death, Police brutality, Blood, Grief, Kidnapping, and Genocide

befrazzledenby's review against another edition

read the trigger warnings first y'all whew

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Cancer, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, War, Child death, Genocide, Medical content, Body horror, Sexual violence, Death, and Confinement

hkantola11's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Genocide, Child abuse, Child death, and Death

readingwithkaitlyn's review

dark emotional medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Sexism, Death, Torture, Murder, War, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Violence, Police brutality, Misogyny, Medical content, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Gore

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Cancer, Terminal illness, and Excrement

Minor: Death of parent, Child death, Classism, and Alcohol

violet_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I can't believe I waited this long to read a book by Ruta Sepetys! What an amazing author, I was completely immersed in the story. The characters are so well written that they are all brought to life. Even secondary characters are more than just props for the main characters. Really loved this one and I can't wait to read more by Sepetys.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, War, Violence, Child abuse, Confinement, and Gore

Moderate: Excrement, Torture, Grief, and Blood

pkane01's review

informative inspiring sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Police brutality, and War

padawan17's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Confinement, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Excrement, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Blood, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Gore, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Cursing, Suicide, Antisemitism, Addiction, and Child death

autumnal_moon's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Grief, War, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Violence

nora_knight's review

adventurous challenging emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

Ruta Sepetys writes some of the most beautiful and important books I've read, and this novel is no exception. Sepetys crafts a haunting yet inspiring story of Romanian suffering under communism and the incredible courage of their young people. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Death, War, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Grief, and Child death

Moderate: Genocide and Terminal illness