Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar

24 reviews

monstrouscosmos's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional fast-paced

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

5.0

Characters: 10/10
Relationships: 10/10
Atmosphere/Setting: 9.5/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Plot/Intrigue: 9.5/10
Internal Logic: 10/10
Entertainment: 10/10
Overall: 68/70, 5*

I love epistolary novels, quantum time travel plots, and messy star crossed sapphic romances, so I figured from the get that I'd be really into this. and I was! I especially loved the ways the characters spoke with one another across timelines, and gave context for themselves as individuals, within their respective collective experiences, and within their shared relationship over time(s). the writing about writing was also really fun! there are definitely moments that delve into disturbing themes and events, but for the most part I found the tone stayed hopeful in belief for better circumstances. 

it's definitely something I need to relisten to (I feel like I missed a lot in my first run thru due to the narrative bouncing around quite a lot), but I'm so excited to revisit it! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Medical trauma, Torture, Abandonment, Colonisation, Animal death, Child abuse, Blood, Cannibalism, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, Medical content, Self harm, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, War, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Gaslighting, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, and Stalking

Minor: Religious bigotry, Sexual content, and Cursing

Graphic: spiders

tlindhorst's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

This book will reward re-reading, mulling over & reading outside reviews. It is complex, romantic, full of hope & despair all at the same time. Is the conclusion that

we must break away from more collective identities correct

?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Death, Torture, Gore, Murder, and Violence

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Self harm, Blood, Confinement, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide attempt

augustar14's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, War, and Grief

Minor: Stalking, Murder, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Blood, Gun violence, Genocide, Colonisation, Abandonment, and Death

rickireadss's review against another edition

4.0

this was a mind trip for sure. in some ways, i feel like i actually kinda understood what was happening, but in other ways, i feel like i was much too stupid for this book haha. i enjoyed listening to this on audio. the gasp i gusped at that ending-- WTF. overall, i had a good time, but i'm still not sure i understood 100% of what happened/was happening/where that ending took us.

representation: Sapphic FMCs

content warnings:

death, violence, war, blood, murder, body horror, gore, injury/injury detail, grief, torture, suicide attempt, genocide, self harm, confinement, stalking, abandonment

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Death, Blood, War, Murder, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Moderate: Torture, Stalking, Abandonment, Confinement, Self harm, Genocide, and Suicide attempt

fragrant_stars's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.25

I started it today and I couldn't put it down!! I finished it this evening.

This book was more challenging than I expected because of how poetic the writing style was-- but I really enjoyed it nonetheless, especially the second half of the book. It's a masterpiece, one that I feel like I'm definitely going to want to re-read again sometime.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, and Grief

Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Violence, Cursing, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Stalking, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Abortion, Pregnancy, and Torture

dannothedino's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Mental illness, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Violence, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and War

Moderate: Vomit, Murder, Animal cruelty, Medical content, Animal death, Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, and Torture

Minor: Abandonment and Cannibalism

banscout's review

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

i said midway through reading this that i wanted to inhale the words and grasp desperately to each syllable as if it were the last breath i ever took, but honestly, after finishing the book i now know that i want for more than that. i want to tear apart my heart and embed each word onto each and every artery. this is a masterpiece, well and truly. i have never read such a thrilling piece that has had me in ruins because good god, that writing is not even phenomenal, it is a word not even fathomed to language yet. this is a gift to the writers told that to write, you must meet tradition. fuck tradition. write with the flowers in mind, and love with your words entwined.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Body horror, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Abandonment, Suicide attempt, Gore, Cannibalism, Torture, Animal cruelty, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Medical content and Grief

gabriella_'s review

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I’m gonna be honest I found this book kinda pretentious. I don’t like a “learn on the job” approach to lore/world building when I barely have time to get a sense of what the actual setting is - and the mental mindfuck of added details made me feel even more lost at sea.

I loved the letters and the main characters’ dynamic. Some scenes had prose-writing so beautiful it read like poetry. The final quarter of the book had me in its grasp.

This book had a dreamlike quality to it, like a fairy tale. It feels like if 1984 meets Snow White meets Revolutionary Girl Utena meets Camus’ The Stranger. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Body horror, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Abandonment, Blood, Death, Murder, Xenophobia, Grief, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Torture, War, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

spookily's review

adventurous challenging dark hopeful medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Violence, Grief, War, and Suicide

Moderate: Animal death, Medical content, Confinement, Murder, Torture, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Gun violence, Vomit, Alcohol, Cursing, Abandonment, Gaslighting, and Child death

broccoli_j's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

In the words of bigolas dickolas:
„read this (book)“

I, and the internet, know with my whole heart that this is going to be a classic. 

This book is pure genius, you don’t need to like sci-fi or love story’s or wars to like this story. This story will make you like it. 
If you love literature, you will love this book. This is just the rule!

So, enjoy reading!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Death, Grief, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, War, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, and Emotional abuse