Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen

131 reviews

jessi_lou95's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Racial slurs, Rape, and Suicide

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

4.75

This book grabs the reader by the throat and forces us to reckon with the horrors of the past along with the characters and understand how these structures loom over us today. Like the FMC Mira, we are witnesses, and how can we just go along with our complicity after we’ve seen, heard and felt our way through this story?

Overall, this was powerful, necessary, unrelenting, brutal and harsh. This was also the first book I’ve ever read that had satirical elements that were so deeply unfunny and made me realize that satire doesn't hinge on humour. 

A note on format:

I read this 50/50 audio and physical. I did prefer the physical, but only because I needed more time with the book. To read and re-read, to sit and think about the passages I read. To re-visit certain chapters for reflection. And to immerse myself in the lyrical writing of LaTanya McQueen.  

That being said, the narration was superb, and I think there were certain performance elements the narrator made that increased the horror of the book. My preference for the physical was despite the fact that the narrator was great.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

aleynakaterina's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

2.0

I think I wanted so much from this book and it fell flat of that expectation but that doesn't mean that the story and the message wasn't powerful and one I believe continues to need to be told. 

I felt frustrated that from the title it was implied that there would be some sort of retribution for the enslaved and their ancestors but it felt like the only ones who were truly haunted from the reckoning was the two black main characters. 

Maybe that was the message and I'm not that great at assigning value to the undercurrents in literature but I wanted it to be so much more. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, and Slavery

eklektikam's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Rape

skogsheks's review against another edition

dark sad

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

hopiedee's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Sexual harassment

faith_06's review

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, and Slavery

sebsux_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Rape

phoebebrainrot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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

wow wow wow wow
such a poignant novel, you almost don’t have words. beautifully written and morbidly true. definitely worth a read. allow yourself to be uncomfortable

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism

kurojiri's review

dark 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? N/A

4.0

The audiobook was fantastic and made it very atmospheric.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Hate crime, Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Torture