Reviews tagging 'Death'

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire

49 reviews

yourlocalsadie's review

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Blood

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Self harm, and Death

boneloose's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

new all-time favorite. holy shit. definitely a book i can see myself rereading over and over to catch every bit of foreshadowing i can find. holy shit i haven't read a book so good it leaves me in a daze upon finishing it in ages. (similar to vicious by v.e. schwab in vibes)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gore, Suicide attempt, and Death

Moderate: Gun violence, Body horror, Gaslighting, Child death, Death of parent, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Forced institutionalization

Page 101 in the US hardcover edition for forced institutionalization mention. A character is painted as crazy for experiencing something that actually is happening and is threatened with forced hospitalization and forced anti-psychotic medication.

milliemudd's review

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Violence, Death, Gore, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Physical abuse

rasa's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

I don't think I can write a proper review of this book without spending at least 5 pages. I read this book for a month, this is the only book I read in September. But I kept thinking about it for the entire month, almost every waking hour and part of the reason it took so long was because I didn't want to let go and at the same time, the real life stuff was SO REAL and I kept feeling like all of it is happening to me too, and all of the emotional range is very, very rough, deep and entangled. There was so much mystery, fantasy, fairytale elements and all of them made sense to me. Like this is how the world should be, this is why emotions are difficult some times. There is a chance that I will judge my future friendships on what others think about this book. It is very niche, not everyone will like it. but for me - it was so much more than perfect. Roger and Dodger and their relationship is soo precious. I have never read a book like this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Self harm, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Abandonment and Violence

redkeys's review

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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, and Death of parent

Minor: Child death

chloeeereads's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book has easily made its way into my all time favourites list. I was so hooked right from the first sentence - this book intrigued me, confused me, made me laugh, made me sad, made me think, and I loved every second.

The premise of this book is confusing but so cool and I will try and explain as best I can without giving anything away. Rodger and Dodger are twins (one set of many) engineered by alchemists and separated at birth, destined to grow and live a life apart before coming together when their maker deems fit. Roger is incredibly skilled in language and words, and Dodger in mathematics and numbers, but neither of them realise just how important or dangerous their abilities are. Together, they are the physical embodiment of The Doctrine, an ancient conception which allows its wielder to control time and the universe. 

We follow Roger and Dodger throughout their childhoods and into adulthood, as they begin to learn more about themselves, each other, and the world around them. The writing in this book was stunning, and McGuire had such a way of taking something inherently weird and dark and twisted and confusing and weaving it into a story about friendship, family, heartbreak and sacrifice. The relationship between Roger and Dodger was raw and tender and so wonderfully built as the story progressed. There were characters that you couldn’t help but just hate, and so many twists and turns. It was so fun trying to figure out what was going on as Roger and Dodger were doing the same, and we deal with multiple timelines, time warping, telepathy and more. It’s definitely a confusing book and one that will make you verbally say “uh what the fuck” more than once, but it was so intriguing and wonderfully executed. I have been thinking about these characters and this story since I closed this book, and I will probably never stop thinking about it.

If you’ve been seeing this book around or meaning to read it, this is your sign to pick it up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Blood, Murder, and Gore

Moderate: Death and Death of parent

hanz's review

challenging dark mysterious medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence

Moderate: Car accident

alcoraca's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Murder, Suicide attempt, Blood, Death of parent, and Death

cameronreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

I put off reading this book for so long and it was because I knew I was going to love it and wanted to 'save it', but love doesn't put into words how amazing this book was. It was one of the most beautifully crafted books I have ever read, and whilst I was confused for most of it (and still somewhat am) it was in such a delightful way that added to the amazing atmosphere and made the experience infinitely better. The characters were so deep and complex and I loved watching Roger and Dodger grow up and how their relationship developed throughout the years. I love how Seanan McGuire utilises all her characters to the fullest and truly fleshes out each one, allowing us to read from so many perspectives and really get a sense for what's going on. The 'magic' system was wonderful and confusing in the best possible way. It was dark and atmospheric and simultaneously heart-breaking and joyful. I adored this book. Seanan McGuire did it again. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Suicide attempt, Death, Blood, Self harm, and Violence

Moderate: Death of parent and Cursing

Minor: Addiction

meliroo's review against another edition

4.5

4.5 ⭐

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Murder, Blood, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Sexism, Torture, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Self harm

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Vomit