Reviews with content warning for Injury/injury detail - Bitter

I'd like to reiterate what I said in my review of Pet. Which I will not repeat here but it still stands. I liked, nay, LOVED Vengeance. And the worldbuilding in this sequel / prequel is just so rich. Not that they have to, but Emezi could run wild with this world alone and never be broke again. It's so beautiful, it's so refreshing. Pet was so warm and sweet and this was so dark and sultry... Bitter if I may. But both books, despite how different they feel, smell, sound, despite how different the in-universe world is barely a generation later, both taste like eating really good dark chocolate. For me. I say this because I love dark chocolate. And I did eat a few while reading, but because the world already made me think of the flavor! What I mean is the world itself is rich, flavorful, colorful, and even though the books are different they have the same heart.

Emezi has a real talent, a real beauty in absorbing me into these words. There was one page I gasped at least 10 times, just one page! And throughout the whole book I was so giddy. But can you blame me? A straight (presenting(?)) couple so gay they grow to have a trans daughter? I love it here! We have no choice but to stan! If there's a third book I'm sending Emezi my paycheck the day the book is announced.

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emilyreads_books's review

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dark emotional inspiring 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

5.0

Content Warnings

anonymous_k's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Additional Trigger Warnings: Foster Home Trauma

Good book! I go back and forth on whether I like Bitter more than Pet, but both were good and important reads! All educators need to read these books (Pet and Bitter), and I would argue that any teens who are able to read such traumatic topics should read them too. I gave it a 4.5 because reading such heavy and traumatic topics is hard for me. I am very happy to have learned more, but it took me a long time to read this book because of the severity of the trauma talked about in this book. Overall, I loved this book as it did a great job illustrating the trauma people of color (specifically black youth) face in America and it prepares me to create a safe haven and provide support in my future classroom for these traumatized students.

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