Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

91 reviews

lorebeth's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

I really appreciate feminist revisions of traditional 'canonical' mythologies. This shifting of Homer's male-dominated Odyssey to Hayne's exploration of womanhood is significant. A Thousand Ships focuses on the women who were not given a voice. It explores the various levels of oppression faced by women against the framing of the trojan war. 
For example, the novel interrogates Penelope as the "waiting women", Trojan women who are enslaved at the end of the war, and female bodies as sites of violence and sacrifice. 
In grounding female plight against the familiar background of Greek mythology, Haynes is able to unearth the plight of all women through all time. The familiar Greek stories are echoes of our own tales. 
The novel is something of a cousin to Njabulo Ndebele's The Cry of Winnie Mandela, as both novels re-center traditional myths around forgotten female voices. Both interrogate the concept of "the waiting woman" and give their female characters humanity which they are usually denied. 
Haynes' novel is artful and nuanced in the various perspectives so as to give a holistic reading of women in war. 
Calliope's inclusion is particularly interesting as her disdain for "the bard" is a rebellion against being defined by the male gaze. 
Ultimately, I believe this novel could be considered something of a modern classic and I know these stories will stay with me long after the final chapter has ended. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Slavery, Rape, and Sexual violence

tieflingmom's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• 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

Moderate: Child death, Death, Sexual harassment, Grief, Blood, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Colonisation, Rape, Toxic relationship, War, Genocide, Abandonment, and Sexual assault

khaleesiofthegreatwhitenorth's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A little slow to start but even in those moments the content itself was well-written. A must read for anyone with any level of interest in the legends of Troy

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Moderate: Child death and Sexual violence

Minor: Child abuse

awebofstories's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Sexual assault, Murder, Blood, Sexual violence, Infidelity, Violence, Death, Kidnapping, Torture, Genocide, War, Rape, Slavery, Grief, and Suicide

aubrey_rose's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Violence

Moderate: Sexual violence and War

dr_bond's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Rape, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Mental illness, Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Death, Child death, Violence, Trafficking, and Murder

lexybexy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Slavery, and War

Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence

booklifeisthelife's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny sad slow-paced

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

3.5

So. This was my first book by this author but also my first Greek mythology book. I'm not familiar with it at all really. So to say it was a little confusing would be an understatement xD. I noticed some inconsistencies throughout that bothered me as well. Still enjoyed the book. 3.5 stars.  I loved each character, felt for each. Was very sad and heartbreaking but I still liked how their story was told. I like the perspective of the women and hearing their voices. Each one was so brave in their own way..I would have liked to get to know each more though. For the ones who didn't die. We never got to know how uhm..the one who married Achilles cousin and the girl the priests son friended, we never got to know how she fared.. Because of my lack of knowledge of Greek mythology and my general horrible memory, I can't say names for many but each character resonated with me in some way. All the female ones I mean. Though Hecabe was a little off putting but she had lost so many peopleand the way she behaved made sense I suppose. I would have also liked to have gotten more of the gods perspectives because that was a bit confusing but that could be due to my lack of knowledge, again. I think I would have enjoyed this book much more if I was more familiar with the mythology. Maybe in a few years if I know more I'll re-read this and appreciate it more

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Death

Moderate: Violence, Child death, Physical abuse, Death of parent, War, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Murder, and Sexual harassment

margaret_k30's review

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Murder, Sexual assault, Gore, Sexism, Misogyny, Death, Suicide, Slavery, Violence, War, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Rape, Xenophobia, Pregnancy, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Blood, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Vomit, Classism, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail

jadstersuperinvader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

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

4.5

It'd be a perfect 5 star if I didn't personally dislike the reaccuring perspective of Penelope through her letters to Odysseus.

The narratives of the different women involved in and/or impacted by the trojan war was a very unique way to write about the subject. A lot of the short stories can be an emotional and tough read but that's the whole point and I appreciated it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Violence, Murder, Sexual assault, Slavery, and War