Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

94 reviews

adrienreads's review

adventurous dark mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

One of my favorite Bardugo books so far - incredible read, I loved it more than the first in its series. 

This book is dark, but if the first book was too explicit/intense for you, this one definitely felt "lighter", more-or-less. Still dark and horrific, but there was far less (on-screen at least) sexual violence, and overall I had a much easier time with this one. Again, still not "light reading" by any means, but worth noting. 

If you've loved Bardugo's other books, this one scratches that same itch, and more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Addiction, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gore, Grief, Police brutality, and Death of parent

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, and Child death

Minor: Slavery, Misogyny, and Racism

whatevertheysay's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore and Animal death

Moderate: Racism

Minor: Sexism

elysianemily's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, and Sexual content

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Mental illness, Racism, and Misogyny

ilsevdhout's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death and Police brutality

Minor: Slavery and Racism

sgrunwald96's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

I really enjoyed this book. I think it was better than 9th house and focused more on the core set of characters than on all of the societies. It suffered some of the same issues as the first one in there’s too much going on and it can be hard to track all the different names and old plot points but most of the confusion just comes from assuming you remember the first book. Super fun. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, Body horror, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual assault, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Racism, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail

shugentobler's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I didn't quite love this one as much as the first but I typically always like the first in a series. 
I am again floored by how much research was put into this book. The details enhanced the story q out. I thought this one went a little slower than the first one but I still enjoyed it! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Violence, Death, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Blood

Moderate: Racism and Sexism

jillyjills's review

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.0

Very different than the first book. The pace was all over the place. Very slow in the beginning and rushed in the end. Would have been much better if there was less quantity, more quality.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Racism, Animal death, Addiction, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Violence, and Torture

smuttymcbookface's review

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

Hell Bent was an amazing follow-up to Ninth House, continuing with the rich lore, three-dimensional characters with flaws, and a boat-load of mystery and death.

A gripe I had with the first book was the constant flicking between timelines to add mystery and intrigue from the start. Although there was some mild timeline hopping here, it felt much more natural whilst achieving the same effect.

I was truly invested in the characters, and I could feel the strain on Alex and Dawes as they were constantly pushed to the limit. The setting of Yale, with the constant references to certain architectural features of the buildings, was woven in to deepen mysteries without boring. The research done for this, as well as the lore, must have been extensive and Leigh Bardugo has done an unbelievable job of weaving it all into the story without info-dumping.

I enjoyed that there was no cliff-hanger ending, just unresolved threads of plot. Although the pacing is slow to start and ridiculously fast to end (so much was packed into the last quarter), I didn't find myself bored or racing through any of it. I enjoyed that there were still small conversations of friendship woven into all of the drama, and that Alex was constantly appreciating the normality of her non-magical life.

My only real complaint was that some of the journeys felt a little bait-and-switch in their conclusion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Blood, Violence, and Animal death

Moderate: Sexual violence, Police brutality, Racism, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Vomit

enyltiak's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

As with the Grishaverse, I find myself so comfortably tucked into Alex's world—of Yale, of Lethe, and of magic. I'm brokenhearted to have to leave it. These books are a new favorite, a perfect read for anyone who enjoys magic, mystery, and darkness. This book had me gasping aloud, crying, slamming it shut in anxiety, and jumping up and down at clever steps and reveals. A masterpiece of modern fantasy and a must-read for any "dark academia" lovers. <3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Gore, Gun violence, Death, Drug abuse, Addiction, Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Violence, Self harm, Animal death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Slavery, and Racism

romiress's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.0

I liked this more then the last one, and for me there was less dissonance over it being a weird RPF variant. The pacing was good, the characters were solid, and it pulled no punches.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual assault, Racism, and Adult/minor relationship