Reviews with content warning for Medical trauma - In Flammen

Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

In Flammen by Megha Majumdar

17 reviews

emudds's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

3.0

this is such a hard book to rate i have very mixed feelings. i think the premise and the use of it to make comments on criminal justice, class, and religion in india are very interesting and meaningful. but, even as someone who loves tragedy as a genre, i'm not sure how necessary it was to include scenes like the graphic depiction of lovely's friend's medical procedure. maybe i've been spoiled by akwaeke emezi's depiction of trans experiences on that point though. i also felt like PT sir was almost a caricature, to the point that it almost undermined the ending events of the novel. it felt less like jivan was let down by the system (though that was still obviously true) and more the victim of his delusions than i would have liked.

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tpantozzi's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.0

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egsreads's review against another edition

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challenging emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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ncoletti's review against another edition

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challenging reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

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amandaclaire's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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? No

3.5

A Burning is a tense, fast-paced, and deeply political novel about three characters whose lives begin to impact one another after the wrongful imprisonment of a young, Muslim woman. This book was not at all what I was expecting it to be, but I found it to be an interesting approach to examine how people use tragedy for their own ascension to power. I do wish there was a more human connection made between the characters, particularly between Jivan and her mother, as they sometimes felt like political chess pieces moving across a board. I really enjoyed Lovely's chapters — she was a lively, engaging, fresh voice that added some much needed levity between heavier chapters.

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