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infinite_harness9030's review
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Death, Excrement, Medical content, Blood, Gore, Emotional abuse, Confinement, and Cursing
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Sexual content, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Classism, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Animal death, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Drug use, Physical abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, and Abandonment
frogknitting's review
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I wanted to like this book so, so badly. It's a trans historical fiction, it's supposed to be in the style of Pale Fire, it's funny and academic, but none of these really worked in the text and, as such, didn't work for me. The main thing is that this book doesn't use theory as a way to drive a story, but a story as a way to explain theory. This could work, if the story was tight enough and enjoyable so the reader could really appreciate the theory. This is not that story — both of the stories were all over the place, and I never felt like any of the characters were very fleshed out. Jack is a trans swindler who loves having sex with childhood trauma — but what is he like? Is he funny or suave; is he challenged in any way with his worldview? Not really. Neither are any of the side characters. I wanted to like Bess so much, but she also had little outside of her backstory and relationship to Jack: no personality or character. I saw a reviewer say that the characters in this are more dolls to move around so that the plot can progress forward and then the theoretical discussions can continue, and I agree with that.
This book is also just very, very sexual. I'll admit I'm somewhat of a prude, but mentioning how good you are at having sex and how much you want to have sex every other page (not an exaggeration) is such a bore and an annoyance. The way that both Jack and Dr. Voth talked about women headed into the misogynistic, objectifying zone, and although I certainly don't think they needed anyone to finger-wag and say "This isn't good!! You need to stop this!" having both of your main characters approach women the same way without their views ever fluctuating is pretty grating.
There's also certainly something to be said about how every character of color exists only to support Jack and risk their lives for him, without any seeming reason. I think it's good that they didn't have any "oh the white character is learning to not be racist anymore :) isn't he great?" parts, but in refusing to flesh out the characters and give them personalities and deep backstories (aside from Bess), the book is still tokenizing them to an extent, at least in my opinion.
Oh, by the way — if you're squeamish around urine, do not read this book. There's a lot of discussion of urine, both sexual and medicinal.
I saw a lot of complaints about
I know throughout I kept referring to other reviews, but I basically had to make sure I wasn't the only one who was being driven absolutely crazy by this book. I think its publicity coasted a lot on "trans historical fiction! Academia and theory!" but it doesn't have much else (nor is the theory done well enough to feel like it's not a hobbling-together of different ideas).
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Blood, Dysphoria, Sexual content, and Transphobia
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexism, Deadnaming, Excrement, Murder, Abandonment, and Vomit
caseythereader's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
- CONFESSIONS OF THE FOX is one of the strangest, most fascinating books I’ve ever read. I loved the structure, with the body of the book being the “lost manuscript” and the footnotes being the professor telling his story alongside the manuscript.
- There is so much going on here, I hardly know where to start. Everything from the historical erasure of trans people to the prison industrial complex is pinpointed and torn down in a frenzy.
- For me, things got a bit muddled at the end of the book, but overall this book is well worth the trip there. Do pay attention to those content warnings though, as it’s pretty grossly graphic throughout.
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Dysphoria, Excrement, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Gun violence, Violence, Cursing, Death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Classism, Grief, Murder, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Alcohol, Deadnaming, Medical content, Xenophobia, Vomit, and Colonisation
katiewhocanread's review against another edition
- 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? No
Graphic: Medical content, Police brutality, Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, and Gore
Moderate: Racism and Deadnaming
Minor: Racial slurs and Mental illness
meremeth's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Moderate: Racial slurs, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, and Blood
An extremely thoroughly and passionately researched retelling of Jack Shepard through a queer lens. This might not be a perfect book, but it is incredibly well done in certain aspects. I would recommend to anyone looking for good representation of queer love and trans masculine coming of age.wildeflower's review
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content and Gore
Moderate: Transphobia, Racism, Racial slurs, and Genocide
tachyondecay's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I took the manuscript because I could not help but take it once I realized it was trying to communicate something. Something just for us. And if you are reading this, then you know who I mean.… Even if I were saying … that this is a code, they will never be able to read it. There are some things you can see only through tears.
The moment I read those lines, I knew the “us” was referring to trans people. This is not just a book with trans characters and by a trans author; it is a text that comments on the need for a sense of community among trans people that acknowledges our existence throughout history. Voth believes the manuscript is a message to other trans people; he in turn attempts to find a way to safeguard and preserve that message.
Originally posted at Kara.Reviews.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexual content, and Transphobia
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, and Child abuse
Minor: Murder and Racial slurs
sneako's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Vomit, and Gun violence
booksthatburn's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The “Editor’s Note” is part of the story, don’t skip it (it’s not very long). The way the footnotes weave through the story creates some artful and subtle shifts in tone and pacing, with pauses created by reading some bit of the meta-story before returning to the main narrative. The text plays with desire and euphoria and it’s so beautiful; euphoria from simple happiness, joy from sex, bliss from finally feeling right in one’s skin by way of craft, mastery, or gender expression. The counterpoint to this desire is longing; waiting for those golden moments when everything just fits, and taking measures to make that happiness more permanent, more stable. The narrator’s understanding of the text is filled with longing and tempered with discontent, balanced so it’s not quite the same emotional note as the main text (that would be too neat), but something complimentary and frequently wry. It’s also a narrative of heists, escapes, and close calls, an exhilarating tale which was wholly absorbing.
After a heartfelt and contemplative Editor’s note, Confessions of the Fox starts out with some delightfully antiquated erotic descriptions by way of describing The Fox’s crimes. This book weaves sexual and/or erotic content into every chapter and most scenes, in such a way that anyone who will be uncomfortable with frequent coy and not so coy references to anatomy and discussions of sex and sexual desire would be better to skip this one. But if all that sounds great to you, this book is amazing and I hope you‘ll love it as much as I do. This is apparently a somewhere between historical fiction and a retelling of a folk tale about a probably real person, I didn't come to this knowing any of that and still enjoyed it immensely. It's grounded enough to be completely comprehensible without any of that background knowledge, and I love how it turned out. The characterization is excellent, even secondary characters who only exist as references in the footnotes feel like they have an appropriate level of presence and vivacity. The perspective and contemplation by the Narrator in the footnotes balances the rawness of the MC.
Graphic: Blood, Sexual content, and Death
Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, Slavery, Child abuse, and Gun violence
CW for gaslighting, misgendering, racism, dysphoria, quarantine, plague, slavery, blood, surgery, child abuse, depictions of sex work, gun violence, violence, public execution, parental death, major character death, death.ned_reading's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Medical content, Police brutality, and Transphobia
Minor: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, and Vomit