Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Past Is Red by Catherynne M. Valente

6 reviews

gondorgirl's review

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Classism, Gaslighting, Blood, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content

triley's review

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing

Moderate: Blood, Drug use, Violence, Animal death, Death, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Grief, Cancer, and Fire/Fire injury

maryellen's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, and Grief

Moderate: Physical abuse and Injury/Injury detail

kristenelle's review

challenging dark funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

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

4.75

This was strange. At points, I was really unsure how I felt about it, but by the end I wanted more! The main character is a perpetually content person very a la Candide. The setting is a future Earth that is completely covered with ocean; the only human survivors live on floating garbage. 

When I was unsure about this story it was because: a) I disliked the cruelty. (It is kept light and comedic and background, but still.) b) I wish that some of the major events had been described a little more concretely. c) I don't think I buy the actual possibility of people surviving on floating garbage. 

But my loves outweigh those things! Loves: 
-the edgy, poetic prose
-the imagination and description of the world
-the philosophical presentation
-the main character
-the hopeful nihilism 

Sexual violence? Not that I recall. Other content warnings? Nihilism, torture, dysfunctional family, child neglect/abuse.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit

Moderate: Grief and Death

Minor: Torture, Child abuse, and Drug use

aardwyrm's review

challenging dark funny reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Stylized, surrealist weirdness makes excellent set-dressing for the relentlessly serious. Nothing about the novella makes anything like sense, but it's very pretty and at the same time gruesome, which is the best kind of pretty.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Grief, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Chronic illness, Infertility, and Mental illness

misty_muskrat's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad

5.0

This might be my favorite book of the year!  Don't read if you can't take many, MANY curse words.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing

Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Emotional abuse