Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

50 reviews

rainbowrachel's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.25

I feel conflicted. On the one hand, there's a lot to like here. Butler was a great writer, and as is expected from her work, this was laced with intesting social commentary and world building. On the other had, this is probably my least favourite of Butler's works that I've read so far and, yes, the "it's not really paedophilia because she's actually a vampire" thing is hard to get over. On another day, I might have ended up rating this consdierably higher or considerably lower, but a somewhat middling rating does seem right.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Mass/school shootings, Blood, Racial slurs, Racism, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, and Hate crime

wanderingprion's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, Gore, Mass/school shootings, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Racism, Ableism, Sexual violence, Death, and Murder

leadabird's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Violence, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Gun violence

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Pedophilia

Shori, the main character of Fledgling, is a 53-year-old Ina (vampire) whose appearance resembles an 11-year-old human.

She has romantic and sexual relationships with several adult humans other Ina. Although she is really 53 years old, she is still a child by Ina standards. The novel includes descriptions of her childlike body in sexual situations and of how humans might perceive her relationships with her partners (as child/adult relationships). As in her other work, Butler pushes the boundaries of socially acceptable romantic/sexual relationships. She writes Shori as a consenting adult despite the assurances of the other Ina that she is a child.

This content is, at best, thought-provoking and uncomfortable to read and at worst, triggering and representative of dangerous human behavior.

franklola's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Death of parent, Racism, Sexual content, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood

Minor: Gun violence and Murder

alllisob's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Gun violence, and Death of parent

swaldman's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Xenophobia, and Death

Minor: Gun violence and Racial slurs

axel_p's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I hate Wright with a burning passion. This book got to repetitive at times.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Genocide, Hate crime, Incest, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Death, Racial slurs, Violence, Xenophobia, Racism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Gore, Mass/school shootings, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Body shaming, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Classism, Pregnancy, Ableism, Blood, and Gaslighting

holasoyrohan's review against another edition

I really tried, but the pseudo-pedofiliac aspect just didn’t ever make sense or feel redeemed and I couldn’t keep pushing myself to read this. DNF before halfway. I’d heard only good things about this author and was excited to get started on one of her books finally, so it was pretty disappointing that this book is where I started because of the bad taste it has left in my mouth. Might’ve been different if the adult/minor dynamic made sense in any way, but there was nothing that made it feel understandable as a creative choice or pushed a deeper message - it was just icky. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Fire/Fire injury

charrlee's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-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? It's complicated

4.0

Octavia Butler's work in this novel makes you squirm --- it is meant to, and her writing here has been one of the most uncomfortable reading experiences I've had. I'm unsure how to accurately summarize the journey Fledgling has put me through, but I will say Butler has yet to fail in her deliveries. 

This is a text that will have you traversing the themes of blackness & fugitivity and hybridity & "naturalness" while questioning who assumes the role of monsters. Humanity is found in unexpected places as Butler subverts, complicates, and rewrites the expectations and rules of the common Western vampire trope. There is much to discuss about the moral quandaries this book offers. It was a challenging read and probably one of the more horrific books I've read to date.   

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexual content, Body horror, Child abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Racism, Abandonment, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, and Hate crime

Moderate: Blood, Genocide, Classism, Gore, Torture, Physical abuse, Addiction, Slavery, Colonisation, and Racial slurs

happinessie's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Racism, Medical trauma, Hate crime, and Gun violence