Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer

41 reviews

albernikolauras's review

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

This book was such a fun YA sci fi thriller with a cute-ish queer romance. I was expecting a cute YA romance with some thrilling moments, but it was more the other way around. This book continued to raise the stakes and make you worry about the characters at any given moment.

I wouldn't say it was completely mind-blowing or unpredictable, but everything was just a little bit darker than I expected. I flew through this because I needed to know how it ended.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical content and Suicidal thoughts

booksthatburn's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious reflective 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

4.0

THE DARKNESS OUTSIDE US features two older teens on a space mission to rescue Ambrose's sister. When little things stop adding up, the more Ambrose and Kodiak try to find out what's happening, the more the A.I. gets in their way.

The plot takes a while to get going, the beginning is a lot of worldbuilding which is usually smoothly conveyed, but occasionally veers into thinly veiled infodumps. Once things get going (somewhere between a third and halfway in) they pick up quickly and the story becomes very engaging. It has much of what I love most about time loop stories without technically being one. I was initially hesitant about the relationship between Ambrose and Kodiak, their chemistry grew slowly and I'm a bit too demi to buy into a romance driven by being the only two people they can interact with, but once I accepted that they clearly like each other I was able to settle in and enjoy the story. 

They're from two different countries (apparently the only two countries on Earth at the time of their ship's launch), which are implied to be Russia and an Anglophone country (I'm pretty sure this is supported by the actual text, the audiobook narrator used a Russian accent for Kodiak and a British one for Ambrose which may have affected how I interpreted the story. They make reference to a cold war, so I'm pretty sure that's what was happening. This felt a bit off to me from a worldbuilding angle because there are other large countries who could just as easily have been used as the starting point for the two remaining world powers, but I think the choice ends up working. With that small caveat, I love the second half of the book, I had an excellent time and didn't want it to end. 

I would highly recommend this, except for my uneasiness about the country choices and the fact that in the first quarter I almost didn't finish it because of the slow pacing and how I wasn't getting into the romance at first. If you want a groundhog day story about gay love in space, with a possibly hostile A.I., try this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Death

Moderate: Cursing, Excrement, Medical content, Sexual content, Cancer, Terminal illness, Vomit, and Violence

Minor: Injury/Injury detail

sarahna's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Excrement, War, Violence, Suicide, Medical content, and Cancer

book_voyager's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

4.0

Ohmygosh… That was nothing like I expected and somehow everything I wanted. Clever storyline and adorable characters, and space adventure. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Vomit, Cancer, and Suicide

yoursupremereads's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This was something I was not expecting. Gay teens in space? Dystopia? New planet hopping? Spaceship faring? Dark science fiction with sinister AIs? This gave me a run for my money. A great addition to the YA queer canon of literature for young people to consume. A story I wish was here when I was a youngling.

Ambrose and Kodiak's light enemies to lovers journey was honestly heart warming, especially given the fact that Schrefer makes it feel like these two boys are the only people in the entire universe, so interaction was inevitable. But their budding romance was handled in the best way possible. And the looming threat of the vacuum of space outside their spaceship was ever present and tense. And the twist, made my jaw drop. Just know clones are involved and it was mind blowing. But the best thing about the story is that Ambrose and Kodiak get a happy ending that was worth the trials and tribulations of their journey.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Medical content and Grief

Minor: War, Colonisation, and Classism

laesterlurch's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Suicide, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Body horror, Murder, Terminal illness, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Gaslighting, Genocide, War, and Medical content

jesthemess's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content, Medical content, and Cancer

Minor: Xenophobia, War, and Injury/Injury detail

inkdrinkers's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

How do you describe a book that you know will inevitably become a classic?

This is a true science fiction masterpiece. The ending gives the same rush of emotion as classics like "The Lottery" or "The Most Dangerous Game." The plot and execution was lofty, but it absolutely nailed it. Everyone should read this, digest it, and then go for a walk outside and take in the sheer magnitude of what this story accomplished.

I loved this. I loved the characters. The formatting was a little difficult to get used to, but it pays off tenfold in the end and is the only way this story could be told. Please go into this blind, don't look up a single thing if you can.

This is a truly magnificent book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Vomit, Sexual content, and Violence

Moderate: Abandonment, Gaslighting, Death, Medical content, Death of parent, Grief, Blood, and Chronic illness

Gore content is less than a horror movie, on par with a thriller. Contains mentions of bodies and death. Vomit is described. Sexual content is steamy and fade to black but discussion is had about it. Violence might be scary and was akin to assault. Moderate triggers: Abandonment is a huge plot point. Blood and chronic illness are mentioned throughout as byproducts of being in space and exposed to radiation. Death is both seen on page and mentioned off. Death of a parent is off page but discussed. Gaslighting is done by a side character and is a catalyst for the plot. Grief is openly discussed and worked through. Medical content is included throughout as the characters become ill and need aid.

miaaaahh's review

adventurous emotional funny hopeful sad medium-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

5.0

I literally have no words other than it was an emotional rollercoaster. Just read this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual content, Cancer, Abandonment, Gaslighting, and Medical content

Minor: Suicide

taelights's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I HATE THIS BOOK SO MUCH. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Vomit, Blood, Medical content, Cancer, Confinement, Death, Cursing, Gaslighting, and Grief

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Biphobia, Death of parent, Fatphobia, and War