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discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
I feel like I should have a bunch of really thoughtful reactions to this story, since there’s obviously so much going on thematically, but more than anything I just feel like my brain is stuck on the buffering screen, lol.
I loved the premise—an enormous space vessel acting as a sort of Noah’s ark, harboring a human population fleeing earth in search of the proverbial promised land. I appreciated the autistic, intersex, trans/non-binary, and asexual representation, as well as the allegorical interpretation of the antebellum south.
I struggled a little bit with some of the dense “science-y” terminology and just ended up skimming a lot of it, assuming I’d be able to get the gist. I had a similar issue when I tried to visualize some of the things described (in particular, the fields where lowerdeck workers harvest crops). The only other thing that threw me off sometimes was the quick jumps around through time, and not being able to sure when a “flashback” is being described and at what point have we jumped to the present again.
Other than that I really enjoyed this book, especially the second half. It’s beautifully-written, and the characters are nuanced and richly crafted.
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Racism, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Death, Grief, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Rape, Homophobia, and Sexual violence
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Abortion, and Gun violence
rcsreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The story of Aster learning about her mother through the journals she left behind started out so well and then kind of got lost later. We just dropped it for the middle of the book and then it reappeared at the end with a lot of solutions which clearly happened off page.
I could see why Giselle was there to show us the effects of trauma but i have no idea why she was Aster's friend, she seemed to hate her a lot and they had nothing in common apart from living on the same floor of the massive ship. I have no idea what the Lieutenants motives were, he was a cartoon villain who just decided one day that a random child was his nemesis and he was going to mess with her for the rest of his life.
It was very readable and I enjoyed it but this review seems to think otherwise...
Graphic: Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Vomit, Medical content, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Abortion, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Bullying, Child abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, War, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Self harm, Sexism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Stalking
laguerrelewis's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death of parent, Child death, Classism, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Medical trauma, Torture, Grief, Hate crime, Pregnancy, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Violence, Abortion, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Death, Medical content, Rape, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Confinement, Police brutality, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Child abuse and Transphobia
greywolfheir's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Classism, Grief, Death of parent, Death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Police brutality, Sexual violence, and Racism
jdianm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Vomit, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Ableism, Colonisation, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Murder, Blood, Confinement, Death, Torture, Rape, Racism, Physical abuse, Dysphoria, Suicide attempt, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Police brutality
Minor: Death of parent, Abortion, Gun violence, and Domestic abuse
readingthroughinfinity'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Rape, Physical abuse, Classism, and Child death
Moderate: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual violence, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent and Abortion
dragon_s_hoard's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Suicide attempt, Torture, War, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, Classism, Death of parent, Drug use, Infertility, Abandonment, Ableism, Confinement, Lesbophobia, Murder, Racial slurs, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Sexism, Stalking, and Terminal illness
lim's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Classism, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Misogyny, Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Violence, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Torture, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Slavery
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, Lesbophobia, Confinement, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Dysphoria, Death, Body shaming, Bullying, and Incest
Minor: Abortion, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Vomit
sarkenobi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Police brutality, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Torture, Xenophobia, Ableism, Classism, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, Gore, Homophobia, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Abortion, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Death of parent, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Chronic illness, Cursing, Drug abuse, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, and Miscarriage
Minor: Child abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Vomit
emzhay's review against another edition
- 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: Medical content, Suicide, Violence, Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Slavery, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Rape, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Minor: Pedophilia, Incest, Dysphoria, Abortion, and Terminal illness