Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

White Horse by Erika T. Wurth

23 reviews

jocelynmwagner's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious slow-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

Great book, a little slow to start but I liked the pace and thought the character development was really good. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Colonisation, Death, Drug abuse, and Death of parent

Minor: Child abuse, Rape, Domestic abuse, and Sexual violence

carriepond's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.25

White Horse by Erika T. Wurth opens with our protagonist, Kari James, in the bar after which the novel is named. Kari is an urban Native who loves heavy metal music, Stephen King novels, and hanging out with her cousin, Debby, whenever Debby's controlling husband okays it. Debby has found a bracelet that used to belong to Kari's mother, who disappeared when Kari was a baby. Kari has always assumed that her mother left her and her father and her father, who is incapacitated by a traumatic brain injury after a car wreck when Kari was young, is unable to offer insight. Soon, Kari begins to have visions of her mother's ghost, prompting her to open all manner of old wounds in search of the truth.

Although there were a lot of things I really liked about this book, in the end, it didn't quite come together for me. Pros: I loved how Wurth used Indigenous spirituality and culture to add depth to the typical ghost story. I also loved Wurth's description of Denver and all the places Kari went-- I felt like I was there and it made me want to visit Denver immediately. I also loved how the world Kari inhabits is imbued with native culture without Wurth overexplaining or hand-holding readers who might not be familiar-- it is what it is, and it feels authentic and complete as a result. I also love the way Wurth explores trauma, both individual and collective, and how those traumas ripple down and reverberate through generations. Cons: I found the plot to be pretty predictable and a little all over the place at times, and Wurth spent a lot of time on subplots that I found uninteresting and a little annoying (Debby and her husband, for example), which distracted me from the elements of the novel that were really interesting and compelling.

Although this didn't quite live up to my expectations, I would still recommend it to fans of horror that subverts norms and explores big ideas while still being spooky. There were a lot of great elements here, and I would check out a future novel from Wurth.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Gun violence

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, and Misogyny

Minor: Car accident

yuyuv's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, Drug use, Medical content, Murder, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Colonisation, Cursing, Addiction, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Violence

Minor: Forced institutionalization and Car accident

bambooboy's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Pedophilia, Murder, Grief, Alcohol, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Blood, Gun violence, Body horror, Cursing, Death of parent, Death, Violence, Sexism, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug abuse, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Incest, Sexual content, Medical content, Classism, Racism, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Colonisation

ecn's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Drug use, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Grief, Dementia, Colonisation, Death of parent, Incest, Rape, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Violence, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

teatimewtrisha's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Murder, Suicide attempt, Grief, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Death of parent, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Cursing, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Racism, Drug use, Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: Vomit

dahlia_boo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, Addiction, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Cursing, Incest, Colonisation, Abandonment, Ableism, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Rape, Self harm, Gore, Grief, and Pedophilia

Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Car accident

wai's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, Gun violence, Grief, Alcohol, Gore, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Blood, and Colonisation

Moderate: Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Incest, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Pedophilia

Minor: Medical content and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

apworden's review

challenging dark funny 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Suicide attempt, Grief, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Colonisation, Sexual harassment, Violence, Pedophilia, Murder, Misogyny, Alcoholism, Police brutality, Gun violence, Child abuse, War, Racism, Cursing, and Emotional abuse

careinthelibrary's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Gun violence, Murder, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Drug abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Colonisation, Racism, Chronic illness, Incest, and Sexual violence

Minor: Gaslighting and Car accident