Reviews tagging 'Violence'

A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan

21 reviews

nassuada's review against another edition

adventurous emotional lighthearted mysterious relaxing slow-paced

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

3.75

I really wanted to rate this book higher as it has all the things I usually love about books - dragons, science, a really interesting premise, and an outspoken woman as the main protagonist. I loved the first half of the book. The worldbuilding really hooked me, and there was a lot of really strong characterisation that defined everyone's motivations. But it started to fall flat afterwards when the main plot took over, and I found myself skimming the last few chapters. I really didn't like the ending, either - it felt like the author was in a rush to wrap everything up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Violence, and Slavery

Minor: Miscarriage

meganpbell's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

I should have been obsessed with this book—I am totally the target audience! However, the main character’s xenophobic stance toward the village she’s intruding upon as a researcher does not change enough to give me confidence in joining her on an expedition to the version of colonial Africa in the sequel. I wanted more dragons, more science, and a more intersectional feminism. I would highly recommend Rachel Hartman’s Seraphina series instead!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Animal death

Moderate: Miscarriage, Xenophobia, Violence, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Classism, and Sexism

ayhuz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Pregnancy and Miscarriage

Minor: Rape

novella42's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

I really enjoyed the angle of writing a 19-yr old character from the vantage of an older woman publishing her devil-may-care memoir. Perhaps because of that, I liked the protagonist more than I expected. One of my favorite parts of the story was Kate Reading's performance as audiobook narrator, as she was a phenomenal fit for pretty much every character. The voices, emotion, and nuance she brought to the story gave it a rich texture that I would have missed if I was simply reading the text. (I'm familiar with her work in Sanderson's Way of Kings and was impressed how much more her voice seemed to come alive with this story. Maybe she really resonated with this story in particular?) The scientific mindset and world building were excellent, and it's always lovely to have more examples of women in STEM fields, even in the fantasy genre. I took away a star because unfortunately I'm not very into mysteries and the book's pacing was slow for me. I almost didn't get the audiobook finished before the library reclaimed it, but I also enjoyed dipping in and out of it for a few weeks. Not every story calls for a fast pace, and this one was well told.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Blood, Violence, Xenophobia, Death, Grief, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Gore, Gun violence, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Classism, Medical content, and Religious bigotry

anntharai's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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? No

5.0

I felt this would become one of my comfort books about 10% of the way in. It’s escapism, adventure, and simply wonderful. 

Shades of Amelia Peabody, but with more dragons and less detective work. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Violence, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Blood, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Classism, Gore, and Miscarriage

ok7a's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Xenophobia and Sexism

Minor: Miscarriage

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Sexism, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

theintrovertedintrovert's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, and Violence

anna_23's review against another edition

adventurous informative mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Miscarriage and Violence

puttingwingsonwords's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Grief, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Blood, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Murder, Religious bigotry, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Alcohol, Colonisation, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual content