Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.

74 reviews

leah_alexandra's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.0

This is the kind of book that is always described as beautiful and heartbreaking, but that’s a fitting description. The Prophets differs from other narratives of enslavement that I’ve read, and I really appreciated the efforts here to do something different. I enjoyed the storytelling from multiple perspectives and the complexity of the characters. The writing style was lyrical to the degree that it sometimes tops over into being difficult to follow. Well worth a read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Death, Blood, and Excrement

lisztaffe's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• 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: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

bruhbruh's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Deportation

antidietleah's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

jammoriar's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Violence

katey_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

I had to sit on this one for a while before I was ready to review it. 

Wow. 

Robert Jones, Jr., doesn't waste a single word. Every sentence is purposeful and loaded with emotion, and Jones, Jr.'s writing is lyrical and stunning. This book is mostly a love story between two young enslaved men on a plantation, but it's also a story of the community surrounding them, the brutality of slavery, found family and religion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery

jaytongue's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? No

4.25

This book deals with something no other book I've read really does, which is the violation of the sexual autonomy of slaves in the Antebellum American South. The central conflict is a relationship between two enslaved boys that should not exist, and exists in defiance of the fact that they were purchased in order to be bred, as all slaves were expected to be as part of a return on investment. The resulting narrative is one that explores the true horrors of slavery in the America, as well as the twisted mentalities of dehumanization and gross disregard for human dignity that justified it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder

peachmoni's review against another edition

challenging mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Gun violence, Homophobia, Rape, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Child death, Genocide, Infertility, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

burnourhistory's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

amandalorianxo's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

This was drenched in sadness but using metaphor and purple prose ish ~ poetic language, it doesn’t fully hit you until certain scenes. The depiction of the events of life in a plantation in Mississippi were uncomfortable at times - content / trigger warning include - rape (not just done by the father but by the son as well) abuse (physical / verbal and emotional) as well as other incidences of belittling the slaves. Isaiah and Samuel are supposed to be the center of this story but we get very little in their pov. Instead we receive other viewpoints, and it turns out the head of the plantation is upset that Isaiah and Samuel aren’t producing children to supplement the “growth” So Amos, an older slave, tries to get the people to go against the duo in exchange for no harm to go to Essie ( even though Amos is unfaithful to her) it’s not homosexuality that Amos / Paul is against but the preaching of homophobia. Case in point, Tim (slave master’s son) is aware he too isn’t straight and tries to experiment with Isaiah and Samuel. If we didn’t get so many POV’s (despite the short chapters)my feelings might have changed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Homophobia

Minor: Sexual content