Reviews tagging 'Hate crime'

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

69 reviews

loona0's review

dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Violence

clemrain's review

emotional mysterious reflective relaxing 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? No

4.25

This book is basically to kill a mockingbird? 

When setting foot in a novel that is sung to high praises, it’s rare to come out agreeing. Where the Crawdads Sing lives up to its praise. 

I always find myself back to mystery as a genre. Though I wouldn’t say I have a huge library of them digested, I have read a fair few. This novel is nothing I’ve read before and maybe that’s why it’s so brilliant.

The writing is a bit slow in the beginning. I think the author really tried to ramp up the suspense by giving us a past and a present simultaneously. Though I enjoyed the slowness of Kya’s life, it was a difficult read because it was just so sad.

I liked that this story follow Kya’s life. It felt like a story about Kya’s life and her loneliness. The way she resonated with nature and flourished in it. She’s a trooper. Trampled over and resilient for it. Like the ground she walked barefoot on. The murder trial is something that she experienced and then we followed her life after it too. Good, interesting approach to a murder mystery.

We read the shaping of Kya and it felt so satisfying to have an in on her reason to kill. The perfect crime in the nature by the girl of nature. Satisfying.

All the side characters were entertaining and added so much to the plot. None of them felt out of place, unnecessary or boring.

Great writing. I like the pacing. The intertwining of poetry. I don’t think the past and present of Kya and the murder melded super efficiently. I think the chapters could’ve transitioned  smoother. 

The court scenes were intense. I felt like a ping pong ball following each and every evidence and rebuttal. I didn’t know who to believe. The tension building kept me on edge. I couldn’t put the book down to sleep. 

I was convinced it was Tate. And I think the author knew readers would find themselves there after Tate gave Kya the hat. And to sneakily put in the police getting Tate was a good way to pull the readers leg. Though the scene of Tate’s father dying and it resulting in Tate and Kya getting back together was disappointing. It read like killing off a character to progress the story.

Amazing ending.

I really thought it was an accident by the end of it, but to discover the truth through a poem was excellent.

Edit: I was shocked to find out after finishing this book there are accusations of the author being racist. Which was shocking considering the contents of this book. What a world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Hate crime, Sexual violence, Grief, and Abandonment

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Grief, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Infertility, Infidelity, War, and Injury/Injury detail

bashsbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Murder, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment

keliza23's review

dark mysterious reflective sad medium-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Sexual content, Slavery, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

caitsmythers's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.75

Ancient Greeks defined love in seven different ways because they recognised there is more than just romantic love. This book is a testament to the ‘Agape’: a universal love and selfless love for strangers, our surroundings, animals etc. A common example of this is the love and devotion religious people will have for their God.

This book expertly describes and shows this kind of love Kya has for nature.

Not only do we see Agape, we see other types of love in this book and it is just so beautifully done.

Not only do we see all elements of love, Delia Owens manages to weave in a murder- mystery throughout the novel that doesn’t take away from the personal and human aspect of Kya. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, and Abandonment

lajoy's review

adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism

Moderate: Cursing, Infertility, Infidelity, and Mental illness

miggyfool's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

james1star's review

adventurous emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I absolutely loved this book so much. I don’t want to say too much as I feel the less you know the better and more rewarding reading experience you will get from ‘Where The Crawdads Sing’ but basically, we follow Kya (or the Marsh Girl) who is abandoned as a child in the marsh of North Carolina, ostracised by society and left to fend for herself. The novel interjects the story of Kya’s child-to-adulthood with the investigation into the death of a local man where Kya is the lead suspect. I won’t say anymore about the plot.

What didn’t I like? Honestly nothing. The only thing is maybe a little disparity in terms of writing style between the nature scenes and character interactions - likely because Owens is more experienced in nature writing but overall was still really good. Also, it’s a little bit too descriptive in some parts. 

Getting that out of the way, I ab-so-fkn-lutely LOVED the nature descriptions!! They are so dense, so transportive, so beautiful. Honestly the way Owens crafts these sections it truly astonishing and captivating. Also, our protagonist Kya is so damn lovable, she is so pure and just I don’t know?! I loved her so much. And Tate is adorable!! Oh my god - dream man DREAM MAN I tell you!! Yes, they have their flaws but that’s what makes them real. And despite there flaws (very minor to other characters) they are lovely, kind, caring human beings. And Jumpin’ and Mabel - my heart!! Also the message of protracting out natural environments is so vital and put across beautifully. 

How the New York Times put it ‘at once a murder mystery, a coming-of-age narrative and a celebration of nature’ perfectly sums up this book. You are invested in every aspect and I felt so many emotions reading this - joy, dread, stress, love, longing, heart broken, heart warmed, betrayed and so many more. I loved this this book! Totally totally recommend, if not for the plot then the admiration of nature. 

Easy 5 starts from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Abandonment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Hate crime, Mental illness, Rape, and Murder

mblanke's review

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Cancer, Confinement, Hate crime, and Death of parent

thenovelbookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous emotional lighthearted slow-paced

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

3.75

A good and easy read, but filled with a lot of descriptions. 
  
A heart-warming and heart-breaking story of love, loss, and life.
  
Not hating on this use of a simile, but just as the marsh goes on forever on a hot sunny day, so do the author's words describing the marsh, the sea, Kya's shack, the forest, etc., which is quite a lot of the book.
  
It could also be seen as slowing the story down by using the multi-worded descriptions, as another simile as to the hot sticky summer days that seem to go slow and drag on.
  
I did enjoy the book as a whole and would recommend it as an easy read, a summer read, to get out of a reading rut, or just enjoy a casual read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Hate crime, Mental illness, Violence, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Stalking, and Death of parent