Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse

7 reviews

kelseyd's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-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

4.0

 I was looking for a book to replicate the vibe of "The Last of Us" and boy, did this book deliver. Creepy, otherworldly, plus a badass monsterslayer who is a woman for once? So good. Maggie is living in the (dystopian) Sixth World, with only the Navajo Nation left above water, and legends and monsters walking amongst the humans. Maggie was raised by an immortal and then abandoned; now she fights monsters for bounty and basically pisses off everyone around her. The only person she likes asks her to take on his grandson as her partner (and guess what? He's cute!) and they go on adventures trying to find out who is creating the zombies walking around. It wasn't a perfect book but I am so excited to see where this series goes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Gun violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, and Gore

vivavia's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Child death, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Death, Police brutality, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Cannibalism, and Toxic relationship

raptorq's review against another edition

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Cannibalism, Blood, Child death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Gore, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Gun violence

coffeeandcomedy's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Abandonment, Alcohol, Child death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Cultural appropriation, and Death

Moderate: Cursing

Tagged cultural appropriation as a major content warning because there is some controversy around Roanhore using Diné culture/stories/beliefs as she is not Diné.

horizonous's review

adventurous dark tense

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Violence

Moderate: Child death, Death, Gore, Murder, Police brutality, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Cannibalism and Panic attacks/disorders

◦ Death = Family member

booksthatburn's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.5

TRAIL OF LIGHTING is a bright light in my reading life, a book with urban fantasy feels but nary a city in sight. Maggie is conflicted and messy, with a supernatural ability to bring death (helped by her gun and very large knife) and not much help reconciling that with the rest of herself. 

It's about legacies of trauma and the nature of monstrosity, as Maggie grapples with her understanding of herself. Is she a person who kills monsters? Or a monster who's trying to take other monsters down with her/ Part of this is shown early on when she deliberately withholds her expected part of a culturally important greeting, not wanting to show this part of herself to people she is technically in community with. She feels alienated from them by her deeds. Complicating this is the fact that she's useful to them for the very thing that makes them feel uncomfortable around her, i.e. her talent for death which she uses for monster hunting and retribution.

I love the worldbuilding and setting, blending real climate change fears with Indigenous (specifically Diné) mythology to create a new world from the remains of our own. Some things are directly explained, especially if they relate to her personal history or the particular quirks of this particular dystopian existence, but a lot of specific definitions are left to context clues. 

I enjoyed this portrayal of Coyote, Maggie's interactions with him are interestingly tense. I like Kai, he seems like a good counterbalance for Maggie. My few complaints about him have excellent in-story justifications which come together in the end and turn them from annoying to appropriately mysteriously and foreshadow-y. 

The big reveal is excellent, I'm very pleased by that part of the ending. This was great and I'm excited for the next one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Gore, Violence, Gun violence, Cannibalism, Murder, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Child abuse, and Death of parent

Minor: Ableism

cerilouisereads's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship

Zombie-like creatures