Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

292 reviews

camiclarkbooks's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

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

2.5

I’ve had Alexandra Bracken’s “Lore” on my TBR for years before I finally sat down to read it. I should have just kept it on the shelf…

The plot of “Lore” was amazing, with Greek gods being forced to walk the earth as mortals every seven years, as punishment for their past rebellion. During this time, descendants from Ancient Greek bloodlines hunt the gods in hopes of killing them and seizing their divine power and immortality. 

Lore Perseous escaped that life several years following her family’s brutal murder by a rival bloodline. As the new Agon begins, Lore finds herself pulled back into that world by the reappearance of an old friend believed to be dead and Athena, one of the last original Olympians. Lore agrees to an alliance with the goddess in exchange for revenge, but will it be enough to temper the rise of a new god with enough power to crush humanity?

As a former Percy Jackson kid, I thought that “Lore” was going to be my new favorite book. It has been my most disappointing read of 2023 (as of April). The pacing of the book was off and none of the characters were particularly interesting once we began to scratch the surface. 

Our narrator, the titular Lore, had many secrets—typical of a YA fantasy heroine—but it was not until the last few chapters that the reader learns what she’s been hiding all those years. Her secret was not shocking and was the blandest secret a main character can have in a fantasy novel but that didn’t stop Lore from constantly reminding the reader that she had a dark secret. It would have been more compelling if Lore had revealed to the reader earlier in the book and was only trying to keep it from the other characters.

“Lore” was particularly disappointing to me since I had just finished an ARC of Alexandra Bracken’s newest book, “Silver in the Bone,” and found the characters likable and the plot engaging—with a twist that I did NOT see coming. After finishing that, I wanted to check out more of Bracken’s work and assumed “Lore” would be a home run. 

The good news is that Bracken has improved as a writer between “Lore” and “Silver in the Bone.” The bad news is that I spent way too long on “Lore,” convinced that it would turn around if I was patient enough.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Sexual assault, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Violence, and Child death

Moderate: Misogyny, Bullying, Cursing, and Terminal illness

maregred's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, Sexual assault, and Death of parent

Moderate: Violence, War, Sexism, and Misogyny

Minor: Classism, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

lia_24's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

Minor: Cancer, Child death, Death, Murder, Blood, Sexual assault, and Torture

arleyy's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, and Sexual assault

wishling's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cancer, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Child death, Sexual assault, Death, and Grief

wendybones's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-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

4.5

Lore, Lore, Lore. 

Before I give my review I'd like to say I was absolutely a Percy Jackson girl growing up, so I'll eat up any mythology quite happily. This was just a little sweeter cause it's Greek and the myths I know the most about already. 

I LOVED the premise of this book, as if I needed another reason to pick up the book. In the end the story came through and didn't let me down one bit. I was just shy of giving this 5 stars, but for now it's a 4.5 - thanks goodreads. 

Be ready for FAST paced story, character growth and lore (heh) all packed in to an epic standalone. Be ready for some plot twists enough to give you whiplash but oh so worth it. I recommend this for anyone looking for an urban fantasy that isn't vampires, witches, etc. Still magical just a different flavor. 

Trigger Warnings
* sexual assault (flashback)

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Sexual assault

aeori's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Sexism, Death, Cancer, Misogyny, Death of parent, Murder, Rape, Violence, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Bullying

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

cecilie26's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective 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

4.5

Overall a fantastic book. The pace was sometimes a bit too slow but the story itself made you want to read it through. I really like that the romance hasn’t taken over the books plot like some other books tends to do. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, Cancer, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Classism, and Ableism

thanys_thoughts's review against another edition

2.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Sexual assault, and Gore

unicorn3's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious fast-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

4.75

Ich wünschte, ich könnte das Buch nochmal zum ersten Mal lesen, es ist echt spannend und sehr schön geschrieben, es gab viele Plot-twists mit denen ich nie gerechnet hätte. Auch wenn der Einstieg etwas schleppend ist, lohnt es sich weiter zu lesen, der Rest macht den Anfang wieder wett.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault