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hannahleewhite's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Sexual violence, Drug abuse, Gun violence, and Car accident
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, Suicide, and Abortion
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Addiction, Grief, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic friendship, Animal cruelty, Classism, Cursing, Violence, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Dysphoria, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Mental illness
Moderate: Abortion, Suicide, and Pregnancy
bodiesinbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Cursing, Fatphobia, Confinement, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Vomit, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Car accident, Child death, Blood, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Murder
deagaric'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
4.0
I loved the unpredictable story line and the family saga aspect of the tale. Though I strongly recommend glancing at the trigger warnings before starting this book (the continued rape and sodomy of a minor is very explicit and highly disturbing and I genuinely wish I had skipped reading those chapters), Kapoor also adds in details about the strengths of human bonds and the need for secure attachment to others even when raised around violence and neglect. Quite a few comedic moments as well, particularly from Sunny's assistant, Eli, towards the end.
I also liked learning about India's geography and spent a decent amount of time googling up the places so I can imagine the setting more clearly. The author was born and raised in northern India and I think brings a special expertise to capturing it as a backdrop to the story.
The reason I give this a 4 rather than 5 is the weird pacing; it'll be 100mph for dozens of pages, and then slow down into a school-zone pace for a 100 more. Particularly around the point of Book/Section 3 and 4, the story became a slog, and took willpower to push through to the end. I assume a lot of the seemling unnecessary backstory will become important in the second and third book of this trilogy, so keeping my eyes peeled for that!
Graphic: Violence, Alcohol, Gore, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Rape, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Addiction, Murder, Car accident, Drug abuse, Gun violence, and Blood
Minor: Child abuse, Abortion, Torture, and Death of parent
spongebobbiii's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Drug abuse, and Death of parent
dan047's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Car accident, Cursing, Physical abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Rape, Trafficking, Drug use, Violence, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Alcoholism, Gun violence, and Kidnapping
cstewart88's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual assault, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Abandonment, and Rape
courto875's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Animal death, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Alcohol, Car accident, Lesbophobia, Slavery, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Homophobia, Rape, Drug use, Sexual assault, and Violence
juliatfowler's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Torture, Rape, Murder, Abortion, Blood, Classism, Drug abuse, Suicide, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Violence, Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Sexual assault, Self harm, Gore, and Trafficking
naireeb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Animal death, Hate crime, Death, Classism, Child abuse, Body horror, Abandonment, Murder, Grief, Car accident, Trafficking, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Mass/school shootings, Drug abuse, Cursing, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Addiction, Abortion, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Drug use, and Violence