Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

35 reviews

mari_books's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.0

So many mixed feelings…I feel like the author went overboard with world building and there are so many confusing moving pieces and lore evolving. There were parts I was so lost - and never got an answer to what something was. Even though it makes no sense, this book is hard to put down. I enjoyed the spicy and conflicting scenes. However, Poppy’s internal monologue was kind of grating at times especially towards the end of the book when things pick up heavily. And our male main character has a lot of shockingly creepy lines…lacking polished editing but still an addictive read.  This almost feels twilight x GOT with random other new stuff thrown in. I am interested in what comes next. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Torture, War, and Sexual assault

bree_h_reads's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

0.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Grief, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual violence, Death, Cursing, Confinement, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual content

Moderate: Gore, Emotional abuse, Torture, Body horror, Confinement, Physical abuse, and Murder

Minor: Child death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Pedophilia

cdoubet's review

dark emotional mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, Genocide, Bullying, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Cursing, Physical abuse, Addiction, Death, Mental illness, and Misogyny

Moderate: Kidnapping, Domestic abuse, and Medical content

Minor: Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

louiepotterbook's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

1.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, and Toxic relationship

maevesheehan's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Sexual content, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Ableism, Body shaming, Gaslighting, and Confinement

abicaro17's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

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

4.75

Holy shit this was a rollercoaster from start to finish!! I adore Poppy and cant wait to read more of her and her badassness. My old complaint is the age gap between the two of them other than that it was awesome!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Torture, Body horror, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, War, Blood, Child death, Classism, Violence, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Murder, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Death, Genocide, Gore, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

wiley_coyote5's review against another edition

adventurous dark fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexism, and Sexual content

Moderate: Torture, Toxic friendship, War, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Alcohol and Self harm

The relationship in this book is the classic possessive, 'touch her and you die' that is sexy in books and terrible IRL. The main character is abused physically and emotionally

allisonmspiers's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, Death, Grief, Gore, and Death of parent

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, War, Classism, Confinement, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, and Genocide

Minor: Torture, Bullying, and Body horror

hannibanani29's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Violence

Moderate: Gaslighting, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Kidnapping, Gore, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Medical content, Rape, Sexism, Alcohol, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, War, and Pregnancy

silver_lining_in_a_book's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

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

2.5

 

Fear and bravery are often one and the same. It either makes you a warrior or a coward. The only difference is the person it resides inside.

This book has problems - serious problems. I am not entirely sure how the questionable relationship at the heart of this book could have been given the Best Romance award for 2020, just as I am also not entirely sure why I read it, but here we are: people love this book and I've read it, just barely.

I cannot say that this book is bad in the slightest; it was entertaining, the world it was set in was complex and interesting, Poppy was a very likeable character, and (once we got through half of the book) we got a lot of action - plot-wise and otherwise. However, this is where my issues stem from. This romance was cringy at best and abusive and manipulative at worst. I really started to hate Poppy when her emotions oscillated between love and hate, loyalty and betrayal. After being so blatantly lied to and used, I would not put up with any boy, no matter how pretty his eyes were and how nice he smelled. I'm sorry if that isn't romantic.

I am also so over the abused yet strong main character in YA / New Adult fantasy novels. Having as much power and spirit as Poppy did would be near impossible in the abusive environment she was in and, if she truly was as powerful as the novel suggests, surely she would have stood up for herself sooner. In addition to that, who can forget about the whole pure Maiden side plot (yes, side plot because - let's be honest - the smut is the main plot)? I am not a fan; constant discussions of "naughty" acts, being "inappropriate" and just sexual relationships, in general, do not a fantasy novel make, though they certainly make the word count.

Now, I know that my mediocre experience is an anomaly here. If a dark, dystopian fantasy with a huge emphasis on romance, death and all your typical tropes (vampires, werewolves, a mysterious dark prince from another land, etc.) sounds like a good time for you, this book is worth a shot. Armentrout's writing is very readable due to its almost stream-of-consciousness quality with a sprinkling of very quotable lines throughout is nothing to complain about. I may give her other series a shot for this reason; I just hope there will be no mention of "honeydew", that was a choice. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gore, Death, Murder, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, and Blood

Moderate: Kidnapping, Grief, and Sexism

Minor: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Confinement