Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire

6 reviews

bloodmaarked's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

reread 06/09/23:

i reread this in preparation for seasonal fears which i just went and bought, and quite honestly i feel just as much love for this book as i did the first time. so yeah, no updates, refer to original review thx

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original review 06/12/21:

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oh my god i loved this. something about that cover just told me i would. it was sharp and dark and clever - maybe even too clever at some points, but even where there were plot points that took a while for me to grasp, i was still gripped the whole way through. it's so hard to describe, but yeah, this story was a whole weird, mind-twisting journey of alchemy and power and godhood, and i loved every minute of it. what's more, i loved the cast too! roger and dodger have my whole heart, but i also loved leigh and erin who grew on me over the course of the book. i wish i'd had more time to read because i'm sure i would've torn through it at the speed of light rather than over the near-month that it took in reality. but, if you love SFF, and you love a story that will keep you guessing, i would 100% recommend this. seriously can't wait for seasonal fears to come out - not long now!

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strickortreat's review

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challenging dark 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 one of the most interesting books I've read in a while - such cool concepts underneath an awesome story and I was so glad to see there's a second book. 

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cady_sass's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

5.0

Wow. I’m going to need anywhere from 7-240 business days to wrap my mind around this one. There is simply nothing else like this… I am so envious of Seanan McGuire’s mind and the way that it works. How do you even come up with this?! 

This is weird level 1000 so if you don’t care for nonsense and pseudoscience then just steer clear. If you’re down for melting your brain, this is the one. 

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oliverreeds's review

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adventurous challenging dark slow-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

no idea what happened. i loved every second

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rebeccaxpaige's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0


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booksthatburn's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Middlegame is fervent and beautiful; words feel inadequate but maybe numbers can do. I read this in two days because I wanted to read it forever. A book about time and distance, words and numbers; the culmination of the universe is calling and you should answer.

Finishing this book feels like waking up from a dream, I read it in sections, and loved every minute of it but now I'm struggling to say all the wonderful things it led me through. Every time I finished another section I was torn between a desperate desire to know what happened next, and the existential terror of a precious resource dwindling; not wanting this book to ever end. All the characters are complex and vivid; the villains are horrendously dark and terribly evil but also completely understandable, with simple motivations pulling them along twisted paths full of malice, greed, and efficient brutality. Roger and Dodger (named by people who should never be around children) begin as lonely child geniuses and become so much more. 

It's a story of time loops, paradoxes, trying over and over to get everything just right. I love time loop stories, but this one stands out because it's unafraid to let things go. It's surprisingly linear, reserving temporal mischief for where it's most needed, where change will be poignant and weighty. We hear whispers, catch glimpses of how-it-might-have-been-but-is-not. This book is rich with metaphors, practically dripping with them when Roger is involved. Dodger's sections are more brusque, creating a distinct feel when the perspective switches between them. I won't spoil the other perspectives we get, but the narrators have enough presence to affect the tone of their various sections and it works really well (both in each section and coming together to create the narrative). 

Book CWs for bullying, parental gaslighting and emotional abuse, murder, major character death, arson, graphic depiction of suicide attempt.

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