Reviews tagging 'Infertility'

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

48 reviews

thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• 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

3.25

im v happy that i enjoy the death of vivek oji much more than emezi's previous work. this novel brims with emotion while the writing also deeply touches me at times, and a sense of doom and sadness permeates the whole book even thru - or perhaps esp during - the brief happy moments bc of the inevitable, unfortunate conclusion so obvs touted in the title.

there are def things in the story that i (bombastically) side-eye, however, bc they dont have to do all that to make a point. while the structure adds more mystery to already-known conclusion, it can also be confusing w/ the various timelines and povs. the pacing's quite uneven in the novel's first half as well, being too detailed at points and focusing too much on confusion around vivek's behavior, when more time couldve been given to the friend group's time tgt in juju's house or another safe space, just to make us feel even more for vivek's loss whose happy times are rarely shown in detail.

in sum, tho, this is a story filled w/ emotions and one that shows the struggles of queer ppl that still persist despite popular belief to the contrary and progress elsewhere. it's some sad stuff but it's def the reality for many.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, Infidelity, Death, Grief, and Sexism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Lesbophobia, Blood, and Sexual content

Minor: Infertility

angievansprang's review against another edition

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

• 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? Yes

5.0

Wow. I absolutely loved this. A gut-wrenching ode to queerness and love, this book and these characters will be with me for a long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, Transphobia, Sexual content, and Death

Moderate: Mental illness, Eating disorder, Deadnaming, Dysphoria, and Hate crime

Minor: Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Blood, and Infertility

litliz's review against another edition

emotional sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Vomit, Homophobia, Outing, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Death of parent, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, and Mental illness

Moderate: Deadnaming, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Islamophobia, Miscarriage, Alcoholism, and Pregnancy

directorpurry's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Biphobia, Blood, Incest, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Sexual content, Transphobia, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Sexism, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Infertility, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

Minor: Xenophobia and Fire/Fire injury

kasarin's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Transphobia, Death, Homophobia, and Grief

Moderate: Rape, Infidelity, Domestic abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Violence, Sexism, and Sexual content

Minor: Sexual harassment, Lesbophobia, Infertility, Hate crime, Miscarriage, and Animal death

ramreadsagain's review

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

An absolute work of art and an important story to tell. 

I found some of the character choices hard to understand and I feel like I struggled to connect with the characters, though I largely think this is because I wasn’t in the right mood.

Would love to reread. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Death

Moderate: Homophobia, Infidelity, Deadnaming, Incest, and Transphobia

Minor: Alcohol and Infertility

discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition

emotional sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book ripped me open. I can’t even put into words the effect it had on me. I read it in one sitting and completely lost track of time, it was that captivating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Incest, Infidelity, Homophobia, Death, and Transphobia

Moderate: Infertility, Religious bigotry, Rape, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Bullying

candacealise's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest and Death

Moderate: Homophobia and Infidelity

Minor: Infertility

kaceyjoy's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Incest, Transphobia, and Homophobia

Minor: Infertility

hilarylouise's review

emotional sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Transphobia, Blood, Child death, Homophobia, and Death

Moderate: Violence and Sexual content

Minor: Infertility and Infidelity