Reviews

The Removed by Brandon Hobson

jess_mango's review against another edition

4.0

Fifteen years ago, teenager RayRay was killed when he was shot by a police officer. Since then, members of the family have been dealing with their grief in their own ways. RayRay's mother Maria is trying to find some form of connection as her husband sinks deeper into Alzheimer's disease. RayRay's older sister Sonja spends a lot of time alone but occasionally has a flash of a romance. RayRay's brother Edgar has developed a drug problem and this time, after an overdose Edgar stumbles into a place that he calls The Darkening Land. In this purgatory of a place he stumbles around and is pestered to help out with a VR game called The Savages

As the anniversary of RayRay's death approaches, Maria tries to gather her family around her so they can remember their loss.

This was a moving and troubling look into a family damaged by violence and oppression. The story is alternately narrated by Maria, Edgar, Sonja and Tsala (a Cherokee ancestor). The author expertly weaves Cherokee folklore into the story making a book with a spiritual feeling that is all too real. The novel is simultaneously trippy and brimming with gloom.

What to listen to while reading...
Everyday is Like Sunday by Morrissey
A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cookie
Somebody That I Used to Know by Elliott Smith
Voodoo Child by Jimi Hendrix
All Apologies by Nirvana

lilyreads01's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

3.75

nikfernandez17177's review against another edition

2.0

2.5⭐️ I don’t think I was mentally available enough to grasp this one

jordan_linder's review against another edition

2.0

Okay book, bounced around. Ending wasn’t as concluding as I wanted it to be.

spregasaur94's review against another edition

2.0

I really wanted to love this book. The premise caught me and had me excited about reading it. I did love the weaving of Cherokee myths and story telling and though the imagery related to those moments in the book was beautiful. But overall, I struggled to feel into it, noticing pot holes and not feeling particularly connected to the characters. As others have said, the major injustice that is central to the book felt rushed and underdeveloped. I almost DNF but wanted to see it to the end.

lottie1803's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

lynnette1990's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

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

1.5

jillian_mon's review against another edition

reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

A good book in the beginning, reads like a YA but almost feels like the author underestimated his audience.

The bird imagery is damn heavy and all that usage could’ve been put to work somewhere else. Not to mention, there are two inconsistencies with Wyatt’s age: he’s 12 years old when they first introduced him and later on when they talk about beards he’s suddenly 15? It feels like it was rushed to be finished especially on Maria’s ending day she says she’s never fostered before which is not consistent with the next page where she says this is the hardest because I’ve fostered so many kids before. Also why was Sonja’s naked scene never explained? She had the most possibilities for her chapters and yet nothing was done with it. I’m sorry but what’s the weird obsession with the kid and her wanting to be a mother throughout the book?

just saying if this could be rereleased it could be better organized and condensed to removed inconsistencies. This book would’ve been a four star review, had there been less inconsistencies and plot points more explored I enjoyed the storytelling aspect, but it needs work.

cynnn's review against another edition

3.0

Despite knowing I was walking into a story filled with mysticism mixed with reality, I found the story/stories hard to swallow. Not hard to follow–swallow. Following the stories as they meandered between reality and surrealism was easy, it's understanding why any of it was happening was the part that was hard to grasp. As a person of color, I understand what's being fed to me between the lines (or sometimes on the lines and very blatant), but the character's actions were still confusing to process and I found myself questioning why I was somehow past halfway. Nonetheless, it was an interesting experience.

hellokira's review against another edition

4.0

The first 100 pages are 2-star worthy, but the last 100 had me captivated and emotionally invested, so I'm giving this book a generous 4 stars.