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atlas_shruggs's review against another edition
- 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
The story follows three people: Damaya, a girl with great gifts that the world hates her for; Syenite, a powerful student who wants nothing more than to prove her worth; and Essun, a mother looking for revenge.
Knowing nothing about this book is the best way to go into it. I only knew that it had good representation and was well written, so I suggested it for my book club, and boy was it amazing.
It is masterfully written, the story ties together in such a gorgeous way, and even though it's confusing at first, the payoff at the end is more than worth pushing through this confusion.
Immediately after finishing it I had to go back and read the prologue, and it was so satisfying.
This review is all over the place, but just read this book okay??
Oh and check trigger warnings, for the love of god.
Graphic: Body horror, Abandonment, Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Transphobia, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
monaluffy's review
- 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
4.75
Look for the TW!!
Graphic: Slavery, Classism, Violence, and Child death
Moderate: Torture, Cannibalism, War, and Suicidal thoughts
neni's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Child abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Animal death, Murder, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Ableism, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Vomit, and Xenophobia
prettiestwhistles's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, Child death, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Colonisation, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: War and Pregnancy
heartbrekker's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Slavery, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Genocide, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Vomit
mariebrunelm's review
- 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
In addition to fabulous character development regarding the three narrators, there is dense world-building. As with most great speculative fiction, the world-building can be boiled down to one characteristic (devastating earthquakes), but Jemisin has really thought about all the ways it impacts every aspect of geography & human societies, down to some we would never have thought about but which make perfect sense. In her world, magic isn't about creating something, it's about stopping "natural" disasters through energy transfer. There's also hints of lockdown and curfew and masks, which would have sounded exotic had I read this book before 2020 but now... Well.
TW: honestly, I felt there were all the trigger warnings in this book, but especially rape, enslavement, child abuse, child death, & emotional abuse. Heavy stuff.
Bonus point for trans & bi rep.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, and Grief
Moderate: Rape, Slavery, Sexual violence, and Cannibalism