Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

24 reviews

carleneb's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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? It's complicated

5.0

Really loved this story. Its an adventure buf its sl about human nature 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Kidnapping, Racism, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Grief, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Racial slurs, and Forced institutionalization

bittennailbooks's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

If you are a fan of RF Kuang's Babel, this is your next read.

A standalone, historical fantasy that casts a lens over the archaeologies contribution to colonization.  January Scaller is a curiosity, she is the ward of wealthy Mr. Locke, an artificer that is the head of a highly prestigious archaeological society. January's birth father provides Mr. Locke with artifacts from all over the world in exchange for raising January. After telling Mr. Locke of passing through a magical door to another world as a child, Mr. Locke decides it is time to put an end to his ward's childish imagination. Putting away her childish fantasies, January is offered a prestigious membership into the archaeological society that Mr. Locke runs on her 17th birthday, unheard of for a woman of a colour. Refusing to be another cog in the machine of colonialism, January refuses and upon finding out her father has gone missing on an excursion, January's life is turned upside down. Her only escape maybe the fabled doors in which she once passed through as a small child, it's existence hidden in her old leather bound book called "Ten Thousand Doors".

I thought this book was imaginative, tense, and absolutely threatening to the delicate veil that archeology holds over what its ruined. For those who are wondering about the dog: 

the dog does get hurt (mentioned not brutally described) but is totally fine

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Kidnapping, Colonisation, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, and Sexism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Murder, Misogyny, and Death of parent

Minor: Addiction and Animal death

jazhandz's review against another edition

DNF at 34%. I don’t like the writing style, don’t care for the protagonist, and don’t really care what happens in the book. That’s the trifecta of fatal sins, as far as I’m concerned. Also the whole thing felt weirdly racist to me - not in that the protagonist experiences racism, and not in that historical fiction deals with overtly racist social norms, but the way the author handled race felt, if you’ll excuse the term, off-color.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Racism

Moderate: Sexism

clarabooksit's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Murder, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Xenophobia, Grief, Confinement, Sexism, Classism, and Blood

Moderate: Violence, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Animal cruelty, and Gun violence

szuum's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Death, Gaslighting, Racism, Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, and Classism

Moderate: Self harm and Sexism

flyawaybooks's review

adventurous inspiring mysterious 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Racism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, and Sexism

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense 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

3.0

Harrow writes beautiful prose and excellently nails the desperate longing for something more that every young  woman feels growing up in a world full of adults who make it their mission to squash their spirits. January, Ade, and Jane are brave and strong in the face of prejudice and heartache, and I can't help but sympathize with them on a rather personal level.

The concept of looking for an escape, a way out, a Door is deeply relatable. There is nothing more appealing to me than a door. Especially when that door is old, secluded, or has a special Something that has drawn me to it. I find it difficult to resist the urge to try to open every door I pass, and then I am left wondering what was behind it, even years after I've passed it by. It was so cathartic to see a character who is just like me in that regard, always asking questions and looking for answers.

If there was anything I'd say against it, it's that descriptions of events, people, places, etc. trailed on for too long until it felt as though I was reading a list of adjectives. She's also quite fond of the words "oil," "greasy," "shush," and "bronze." And the ending was rather abrupt.

Overall, I enjoyed this read. And it hits a lot of bullet points in my reading wheelhouse: female MC, historical settings, time travel, magical realism, secret doors/passages, and women on journies.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Misogyny, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Grief, Classism, Confinement, Racism, Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, and Forced institutionalization

shell_bell's review

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Sexism, Self harm, Blood, Classism, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

purplepenning's review

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

"Once there was a brave and temeraryous (sp?) girl who found a Door. It was a magic Door that’s why it has a capital D. She opened the Door."

Set (mostly) in the early 1900s in (mostly) Vermont, The Ten Thousand Doors of January tells the (mostly) coming-of-age tale of January who longs to join her father on his artifact-hunting trips but is stuck being raised in luxury and on display by their wealthy benefactor-collector, Mr. Locke. It is, of course, about so much more than that: a possibly real magic Door, a possibly evil Society, an impossible love story, the impossible power of words, the possibilities of courage and progress. 

I'm a sucker for a portal fantasy and this is such a good one! The narrative follows an unusual format, which might weigh down some readers, but I loved the dimension it adds and the way it drew me into the experience.

Content notes: racism, bigotry, confinement (to room, closet, mental asylum, bed, with and without restraints), tattooing and cutting, knife and gun violence, death, vampire, mind control

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Colonisation, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Blood, Abandonment, Body horror, Death, Forced institutionalization, Classism, Confinement, Racism, Sexism, Torture, and Violence

mikaelaandherbooks's review

While the premise of this book sounded great, I wasn't pulled into the story and felt it could've been executed better. I didn't find the MC lovable or even dislikable in a good way. For how much occurred within the 78 pages I read, reading it still felt slow-paced.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, Sexism, and Racism