Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - Where the Crawdads Sing

Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

366 reviews

katierobertsonshaddix's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
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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kindredspirit7's review

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dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

This book is amazing. However, the author is problematic. There is a lot of controversy around her regarding racism and potential murder. I recommend getting this book second hand and also being mindful and doing some research on Delia Owens before reading or buying. However the book itself is beautifully written, the characters are developed and complex. The writing is honestly just wonderful and the story is dark and real and engaging though jt is slow for the first hundred or so pages. Spoiler ahead!

she is accused of murder just like Kya and it’s suspicious that Kya admits to murder via a poem and hides it away, gets away with it and perhaps this book was Delia’s own confession?

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christinaj1021's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

4.75

Let me preface by saying that I'm writing this review while keeping my opinion of the author out of it. A quick google search can lead you to the speculation behind why Delia Owens is less than an outstanding individual.

All this aside, I absolutely fell in love with this book. I haven't been this emotionally moved in quite some time. The prose, the pacing, the characters, the storyline... all of it felt akin to the marsh and swamp that Owens so avidly describes in this novel. I felt constantly lulled and yet on edge, similarly to how one might feel if they, too, found themselves alone in a marshland that still themed with natural life.

It's a slow read- and as a mood reader, if I'd been looking for something else, I never would've finished this book- but I needed this. I needed to slow down, to look for details, to see life through nature's eyes- we've just come out of the holiday season, so busy and full of material goods. Owens delivers all this and more, with the edge of a mystery tucked between the story of a lonely girl trying her best to become less alone.

My only real criticism is one that I've seen echoed across the internet- Owens' portrayal of Black characters is essentially a caricature. Every Black character (3 of them) has the same speech patterns (as opposed to white characters, who all speak differently), and serves essentially the same purpose- to bring joy to Kya's life through their happy-go-lucky attitudes. Dont get me wrong- Kya needed that in her life... but they are 2D characters that I wish had been 3D, with Kya understanding and supporting them through their own struggles.

Kya sees Black characters face hardships- being banned from areas of town or portions of buildings, having rocks thrown at them, being called the N word- but never brings it up, never apologizes on behalf of others, and never really sees those as hardships for her Black friends. She sees it and it just *is*. As a reader, you wish she would acknowledge the wrongness, given how much other injustice she sees and comments on, externally or internally.

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audreyled's review

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4.5

Read this straight through in four hours.

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heathermarie08's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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cdt96's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

Fantastic book, the only issue is how the black characters have been portrayed as stereotypical archetypes. This added with the controversy surrounding the author makes it lose some score for me. Ultimately though, the book is good.

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onlyahopelessromantic's review

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dark mysterious 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

Coming of age meets murder mystery. It was alright. Very slow at the beginning. A lot of detailed imagery but I wanted more dialogue at first. Once I got through the first quarter, it picked up more. The ending was a complete surprise which I liked. Wouldn't read again but may be a good book to pick apart in a literary setting/English class.

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