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pconley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Murder, Abortion, Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Lesbophobia, Medical content, and Self harm
astoldbyangela's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, and Sexism
Moderate: Abortion, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Body horror
amandalorianxo's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
more complicated than that and despite this book being less than 300 pages, this is one of the few times where I felt the book could have been longer to even out the pacing. I definitely felt Salem Witch Trial vibes but I think the author wanted to do a lot in a short time frame - it felt confusing towards the middle. Ada’s growth as a person was on the right track but I wish there had been enough attention on the other group’s character development as well.
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Racism, Pregnancy, Outing, Misogyny, Mental illness, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Grief, Death, and Abandonment
eleanora'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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Infertility, Sexism, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Racism, Mental illness, Medical content, and Infidelity
Moderate: Abortion, Blood, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
hannahr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Medical content, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Outing, Pregnancy, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Animal death and Grief
nothingforpomegranted's review against another edition
2.25
This feminist take on a Western novel, filled with crime, adventure, and challenging authority, was certainly creative, but I was quite the right audience for it. Indeed, I was so distracted by the references to race, doctors, baby Jesus, the Flu and Fever, and the seeming dissolution of the United States that I was almost more focused on trying to figure out whether this was a dystopian alternative history (a Confederate win in the Civil War?) or a dystopian future (post COVID-19?), and I'm honestly still confused.
I also was pretty confused by the role of religion and by all of the characters. There were many, each with a painful background, but none was particularly well-developed, and the sub-plots detracted rather than added to the story. The one exception to this, in my opinion, was Lark's story, which surprised and intrigued me, but he, too, was an underdeveloped character who stuck around too briefly.
I appreciate the reviewer who acknowledged that this book offers a different take on the Hole in the Wall gang. I had no idea that this gang was a real concept and really disappointed that there was no Author's Note explaining that research and that choice (which guess means this is an alt-history novel?).
I picked this up because I needed a quick read to help propel me out of a slump (too many classics in a row/at a time can do that to you), and it was definitely successful in that respect. The story was engaging enough and kept me turning the pages for the few hours that this took to finish, but ultimately, I think Anna North bit off more than she could chew--infertility, religion, feminism, justice, gender fluidity, insomnia, mental health, medicine, mothering, Western adventure--and it really didn't work for me.
Graphic: Infertility, Sexual content, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical content, Infidelity, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, and Abortion
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Incest, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
kitty03's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Infertility, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Miscarriage
squish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Homophobia, Violence, Gun violence, and Infertility
Moderate: Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Minor: Abortion and Alcoholism
emsim's review against another edition
Graphic: Animal death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infertility, Homophobia, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexism, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Violence, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Religious bigotry, Rape, Racism, Physical abuse, Murder, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Mental illness, Medical content, Infertility, Homophobia, Hate crime, Grief, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Abortion, and Ableism
madelonpaige's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Infertility
Moderate: Gun violence, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts