Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Babel by R.F. Kuang

410 reviews

_polaris_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-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

This is a brilliant book! No questions about it. 
It challenged me, touched me deeply and is so well structured and written. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Slavery and Grief

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use

senga15's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Confinement, Drug abuse, and Drug use

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, and Car accident

princess_azula's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Sexism, Islamophobia, Grief, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

rizky's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, and Colonisation

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Injury/Injury detail

lavendervioletreader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

I can't say anything else but : breathtaking, I don't think I'll recover from this story, ever.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Torture, Blood, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War

Minor: Alcoholism and Drug use

minorvamp's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? No

5.0

What an astonishing book.

I've had this sat on my kindle for nearly a year and so decided to tackle it as my first book of 2025.

The first half is not for the faint of heart, the plot develops slowly as do our characters, and it is all interspersed with deep philosophical lectures from the Oxford professors. The slow pace allows for the reader to get into Robin's head, to fall in love with Oxford and it's mad academic rituals and rigour. And to empathise with his struggle to reconcile his love for the life and family he's built and his creeping realisation of the evils of his colonial oppressors.

I read the last 200 pages in one afternoon, pausing every time my heart broke, but unable to put the book down.

A true masterpiece.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Racism, Xenophobia, and Colonisation

Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Death of parent

beonie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Grief, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Infidelity and Deportation

nikki_flowers's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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

This book was brilliant in so many ways that I cannot even begin to adequately put into words. 

This is a book to help you decolonize your mind. The story itself is beautiful and the message is powerful. Fiction like this is so important. People need to see, these stories, to read these stories. Decolonial fiction like this gives us insight and hope and community and so much more. 

As I reflect back on my journey reading this masterpiece I cannot help but think of the events that were unfolding in the world at the same time. 

As I very slowly (for thoroughness sake, not a lack of interest) made my way through the book, I watched the world justify the genocide of Palestinians and the further colonization of Palestine. I watched so so many people, white girls and women in particular, obsess over this book but refuse to put the message into practice. If felt like a fetishization or infantilization of the book and its decolonial efforts. How many read this book and took what they wanted from it for their own selfish reasons and then watch Palestine burn and called Hamas terrorists or stayed completely silent. A completely colonizer move to take what you want from the book and leave the rest to burn regardless of the harm caused.

And yet, how many others read this work and felt its message in their bones. How many saw themselves on the page for the first time. How many people were awakened to liberations struggles. How many felt and cried and turned it into action. How many had hard and necessary conversations with themselves and/ or others because of this book.

That is the legacy of this book. The change it brought about to so many. The perverse colonizer response is not its legacy but rather further example of exactly why we need books like this. 

May this book live on in the hearts of those who have read it and may it fuel our souls in the liberation/mutual aid/revolution/abolition work we do.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Islamophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Vomit

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mass/school shootings, and Alcohol

sulkshift's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Classism

morganraeann's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

Docking a point because of its slow pace and because I wish it was a bit longer. Such an intricate world created with obvious tender, love, and care and somehow almost 800 pages isn’t enough 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Violence, and Xenophobia