Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

96 reviews

corriejn's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

A great follow-up to the first book, though fairly different in many ways. It's a bit slower and more character-driven, focusing on a smaller cast of primary characters (see spoiler here if you want to know which ones)

This book focuses on Lovelace and Pepper; the rest of the Wayfarer crew is not featured.

It also has slightly "deeper" themes, focused on personhood, autonomy, and family.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Xenophobia, and Slavery

Minor: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Animal death, Drug use, Child abuse, and Sexual content

marae216's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful relaxing 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Slavery

skudiklier's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• 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

5.0

I really really liked this. It was different from the first book in the series, and less lighthearted for sure, but Becky Chambers is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. The characters and worlds she builds are amazing and so well thought-out. This book had some darker/sadder elements than I'm used to with other books I've read by her, but not in a bad way. I can't wait to read the next one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Slavery, Cursing, Dysphoria, Animal death, Violence, and Trafficking

Moderate: Abandonment, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, Animal cruelty, and Grief

Minor: Infertility, Excrement, War, Vomit, Colonisation, and Mental illness

laurajeangrace's review

emotional hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death

Moderate: Slavery, Child death, Death, Confinement, and Alcohol

audbaum's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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

4.5

I loved this book. It explored interesting ideas, had a fantastic cast of characters, and ended in what I would consider a very satisfying way. I loved the way we see our main character change over the course of the book, figuring out how to navigate the world in an unfamiliar setting and with an unfamiliar body. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Slavery, and Panic attacks/disorders

As she is trying to navigate the world in her new body, the a character is sometimes anxious, feels like a burden, and occasionally thinks what it would be like to cease to exist. In a bid to survive her situation, a character must hunt wild dogs for food.

The book goes into some detail about how she must prepare the dogs to be eaten, from washing the grime off of them to smashing the bugs that were living on them.

A character works through trauma surrounding being created to be enslaved, and living much of her young life like that.

rc_boxnut's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful reflective 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Child abuse, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Child death

beccaand's review

adventurous emotional hopeful 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

I love the Wayfarer's universe so much.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, and Child death

Moderate: Grief, Confinement, and Slavery

Minor: Drug use and Infertility

plumpaperbacks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective slow-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

4.0

I read A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet a few years ago and absolutely loved it. Though I always meant to continue the series, I kept forgetting, unintentionally putting it off for years. I was struck by the urge to continue when, to my surprise, I saw a fourth book I hadn’t known existed on shelves at the bookstore, and I realized I missed the series. I wasn’t sure how easily I’d be able to re-immerse myself in this galaxy, as I remembered very little of the first book even after looking up a plot recap.

But I never should’ve worried. It was so easy to get immersed in this story, this galaxy, as if I’d never left. Chambers did such a brilliant job creating this expansive world full of unique alien races and cultures and politics, and I loved every page I spent in it. Although I wish we could’ve spent some time with the crew from the first book, I found myself really liking these characters and invested in their stories. Tak is definitely my favorite, though Blue is a close second, and I like Pepper and Sidra too. No least favorites to be found here.

I’m excited to continue the series!! :)

Representation

• genderfluid side character

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Slavery

One of the two timelines is about Jane, an escaped child slave. While the words slave/slavery are never used, it’s easy to tell that that’s what’s happening; she and a bunch of other girls are kept in a factory to work on a strict schedule, and when Jane escapes she’s not aware of what the sky is or that there’s a whole world, a whole galaxy beyond the factory. The child abuse and death tags are tied to this as well. Animal cruelty and death are tagged because Jane is forced to kill and eat wild dogs to survive.

swazwald's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Slavery

Moderate: Dysphoria, Abandonment, Animal death, and Child death

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Xenophobia, Violence, and Trafficking

vanadiumbean's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective tense slow-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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Police brutality, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Animal death

Moderate: Abandonment, Child abuse, and Cursing