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billyjepma's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
A very good book with very, very good writing. It doesn’t all come together—the ending is a little glossy for my taste, and the genre elements don’t quite mesh with the historical fiction as cohesively as I hoped—but LaValle’s writing and characterizations are so sharply nuanced and textured that I was always invested in the story, even if I never felt compelled to rush back to it—which is why it took me a month to finish it. If anything, I wish it had been longer. With some more space to explore the setting, enrich the character dynamics, and delve into the themes, I could see the story becoming something really immersive. But as it is, LaValle accomplishes a lot in under 300 pages and delivers another tonal masterpiece that strikes a nearly perfect balance between the various genre, thematic, historical, and even political edges it’s engaged with.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Transphobia, Racism, Murder, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Animal death, Lesbophobia, Gore, and Deadnaming
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Dysphoria
peachani's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Animal death, and Violence
Moderate: Dysphoria, Sexism, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, Deadnaming, and Confinement
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Infertility, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Cannibalism, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Racism, and Transphobia
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