Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

24 reviews

arobear's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny fast-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

I haven't stopped thinking about this book yet. It's going to be all I talk about for a while... Characters are immaculate, I cried multiple times for just about everyone. The struggles they go through are real and visceral, which makes the sweet moments that much sweeter. Every twist hit me like a train, but none of it felt overdone. 10/10, already started a re-read with the audiobook. Love and light to all my baby crows <3 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, Addiction, Kidnapping, Child abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Torture, Panic attacks/disorders, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Classism, Sexual assault, and Xenophobia

nineinchnails's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

this was such a strong read and a great follow up to six of crows!! i think having a

major character death

spoiled for me years ago might have slightly ruined my reading experience since it felt like i waiting most of the book for that event to come to pass, but it's equally likely experiencing that blind could have also ruined my experience. i am not really one to nitpick with YA when

everyone lives/nobody dies

because it's too unrealistic unless it gets taken too far so if it was an adult fantasy i might have appreciated it more. that being said, it was written well and didn't feel out of place or as if it was purely for shock value - i loved this book overall, so it's a very small gripe i have with CK.

i love that the romance is a subplot but for one of the relationships specifically it did end up a little vague - that doesn't bother me since i didn't read this for the romance but just a disclaimer for anyone expecting typical romance-style HEAs for everyone! the characters did start to feel a little caricatural after a while but it didn't help that i read both books one after another whilst watching the show adaptation and i found it pretty endearing if anything. it isn't often that a series offers so much representation without giving me the impression they were written to tick off a box and i am genuinely sad it's the end of these characters (outside of nina + some cameos in KoS/RoW) for now :(

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Confinement, Death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Torture, Trafficking, Addiction, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Xenophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Stalking, Vomit, Death of parent, Rape, Ableism, Sexual assault, and Racism

Post traumatic stress disorder, Loss of appetite, Starvation, and Prostitution/sex work

little_white's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness and Addiction

Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Trafficking, Slavery, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Drug abuse, Xenophobia, Domestic abuse, Torture, and Genocide

Minor: Death of parent, Child death, Vomit, Pregnancy, Forced institutionalization, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, War, Rape, and Pandemic/Epidemic

axel_p's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

I have no idea why it took me so long to read this book.

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Classism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Ableism, Blood, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, Sexual violence, Stalking, Trafficking, Violence, Addiction, Body horror, Slavery, Xenophobia, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Kidnapping, Medical content, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Religious bigotry, War, and Torture

lelekochka's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Death, Murder, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, Child abuse, Rape, Grief, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Addiction, Sexual content, Slavery, Xenophobia, Genocide, Torture, and Kidnapping

angelmoo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Kidnapping, Violence, and Xenophobia

kingcrookback's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

I...wasn't expecting this to make me cry the way it did. The character all still being teenagers is still a sticking point for me--although, props to Leigh Bardugo, she did turn that into a little tongue-in-cheek joke in the book. But Bardugo handles both plot and character tension so well and balances them with each other so evenly that I could hardly bear to put the book down sometimes. My only, relatively minor issue is that, as an Asian person, I found the handling of the Shu (particularly events

around Wylan wearing Kuwei's face

) characters uncomfortable. But overall, Bardugo really stuck the landing with this one.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Addiction, Trafficking, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Slavery, and Torture

Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, and Xenophobia

poodily's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Addiction, and Slavery

Minor: Xenophobia and Trafficking

peggy_racham's review against another edition

4.75

 I fell in love with this book from the start.It was briliant to see what "brick by brick" looked like. All the couples, descriptions of falling in love and getting closer, the scheme, is so well writen. Reading about these character slowly dealing with their trauma and being more themselves, its the best feeling. (The moderate TW's are not super explicit and are brief. Only blood and injury are current events the rest are flashbacks or memories.)

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Confinement, Body horror, Rape, and Blood

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Confinement, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Xenophobia, and Cursing

deerlybeloved's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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

5.0

If I could rate it any higher, I would.

Crooked Kingdom is a phenomenal sequel to Six of Crows, leaving the reader antsy and waiting, on the edge of their seat with every new twist and turn. Every revealed detail, paid off foreshadowing, character interaction, and planned event leaves you in a new bout of stunned silence as you listen, tense and wanting to know more.

Each character is unique, and fleshed out, meaning every chapter (each written from a different perspective) leaves you excited to learn more about that individual, and has its own personal bit of characterized flair that makes you excited to turn the page and learn who the next point-of-view is fore-- Matthias, Inej, Wylan? You just have to find out, sleep be damned.

So much weaves together to form a plot where just as one issue is resolved, you remember that ah, that's right, three chapters earlier that other plot point was introduced, and all of a sudden it's coming back-- You can't believe you forgot, but how could you not when the fate of the world was being handled first?!

The end will break your heart, as much as it heals it, giving you as many tears as it does grins as you flip through the ending chapters and realize just how much has been lost...and how much is being rebuilt.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Confinement, Chronic illness, Torture, Religious bigotry, Drug abuse, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Drug use, Xenophobia, Violence, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Grief, Blood, Addiction, and Child abuse

Moderate: Sexism, Religious bigotry, Racism, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Murder, Hate crime, War, Xenophobia, Violence, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Ableism, and Forced institutionalization

Inej, one of the main characters, has a backstory HEAVILY rooted in discussion of pedophilia, child trafficking, sex trafficking, slavery, sexual slavery, rape, sexual abuse, kidnapping, and so much more. While handled with beautiful tact and insight, the depictions of flashbacks and Inej's feelings of these things can comfort survivors of similar things as much as it destroys us. Go with caution. As well, religious bigotry, ableism, trauma, emotional neglect, horrid things happening to children, war, racial fetishization, and so much more is dealt with in tactful ways, but ever presently used as reminders that the world is as imperfect and dark as it is beautiful.