Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

29 reviews

speterson47's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

I've yet to not enjoy a Naomi Novik novel. The variety of characters and the depth shown from so many of them I think it was most drew me to this story. Miryem, the child of a moneylender, gains a reputations for turning silver to gold, and after the Staryk king hears of it, Miryem's fate is shifted. When beginning to read it I thought that would be the end of the story if Miryem was able to "produce" the promised gold, however the interweaving of other complex storylines really kept this one going. I listened to the audio version so occasionally I stumbled in understanding exactly which character I was following, but I didn't find that to be a deterrent for me. Would highly suggest for fans of fantasy.  

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual assault and Kidnapping

Minor: Emotional abuse, Animal cruelty, Child death, Torture, Alcoholism, and Antisemitism

a_rash_read's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful relaxing 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? Yes

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Grief, Kidnapping, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Violence, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, and Death of parent

kateceratops's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, and Death of parent

Minor: Sexual assault

There isn't a lot of violence, but two or three scenes get very intense.

litliz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Antisemitism, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence

gopanini's review against another edition

dark hopeful reflective medium-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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Confinement

Moderate: Antisemitism

Minor: Miscarriage and Rape

directorpurry's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Kidnapping, and Violence

Moderate: Alcoholism and Child abuse

Minor: Child death and Pregnancy

bethann_coleates's review against another edition

adventurous 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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Violence, Alcoholism, Racism, War, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder

sinceraly's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Ideally, I'll write a longer, more well thought out review at some point, but for now:

Spinning Silver is an excellent adaption/retelling of Rumpelstiltskin that does a great job of setting itself apart from the original. The book is excellently written with some of the best prose I've read all year, and Novik is so incredibly skilled at describing things so well you really can picture them all in your head.

The only thing stopping me from rating the book 5 stars is the amount of perspectives the book gets written through, and the nonsense order of how they happen. At first it's as simple as Miryem/Wanda/Irina, but then you toss in perspectives from the tsar, from Irina's handmaiden, from Wanda's brother, and they all happen randomly, it feels like. Though I loved the switch in perspectives at first, eventually it led to the middle section of the book feeling disjointed and not as cohesive as it could have been. Maybe on a second read, I'd feel like it's worth it, but it was a big enough negative for me to keep the book from 5 stars.

Also wish the book would have given me an epilogue if only because I wanted to see more of the Staryk king post "you fight good" moment. I'm a sucker for proud bitches and a redemption arc.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Child abuse, and Blood

Moderate: Abandonment, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Antisemitism, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, and Miscarriage

raquelrose's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Death, Death of parent, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Alcohol, Kidnapping, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Animal death, Rape, Child death, and Sexism

seadeepy's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death of parent, Physical abuse, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Sexual assault

Minor: War and Rape