Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

28 reviews

obviousthings's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I really liked the first 80% of the book, especially the worldbuilding. However, the ending kind of fell flat for me. Major spoilers:

The big final battle was really anticlimactic. It felt like Sunny didn't even try to help in the fight with Black Hat, and then she defeated Ekwensu with hardly any effort.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying and Misogyny

Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Suicide, Violence, and Kidnapping

Minor: Cannibalism

abbie52923's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

I started reading this book without knowing the intended audience - middle school/young adult. Once I realized, the book was easy to read. The writing felt slightly choppy at times and the characters felt 2 dimensional. However the overall plot was unique and enjoyable. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Child death

Minor: Child abuse and Kidnapping

solenodon's review against another edition

adventurous 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder

Minor: Vomit

poffalina's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

This is a really solid story of magic and coming into your own. The introduction to the world along with the main character works really well, and there are plenty of threads to unravel along the way. While the story feels very much like a young adult novel, it was still enjoyable as someone older than that age and there are lessons in it that can be useful to anyone at any stage of life. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Violence, and Kidnapping

windsinger's review against another edition

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Racism, Sexism, and Blood

Minor: Torture and Kidnapping

jsoakes's review against another edition

adventurous fast-paced

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

4.5

Honestly felt like I was a kid reading Harry Potter for the first time again, just in Nigeria. I couldn't help but draw parallels. The magic world is hidden from lambs (muggles), the bad guy is somehow linked to the protagonist, they travel to a secret city to get supplies including a magical implement (knife vs wand), they travel through a dangerous forest, they study and have to pass "levels", the protagonist has no idea she has magic and so everything she learns is new and exciting for the reader, she can understand a special language, she is athletically gifted, and while not famous, extremely recongizable. And so on. This wasn't the deepest story, but it was definitely magical and hit all the right notes for me. There are definitely parts that were inexplicable, but they felt right for the story and didn't feel cheap. 

I also loved the emphasis on knowledge and learning. Learning is expected as a lifelong endeavour and not just a one-time schooling effort, so each student gets a teacher and a mentor, but they also are expected to read and learn and practice on their own. Excited to continue the series.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death and Kidnapping

321zeggy's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Death, Violence, and Kidnapping

alexture's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful fast-paced

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

5.0

The last time I've loved a similar book series so much was Percy Jackson, and that was almost 10 years ago. Akata Witch is well-written, funny and dark when needed. Action scenes are scarce, and well-written; things focus on tradition and on carefully-crafted actions, which I love. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror and Bullying

Minor: Child abuse, Misogyny, and Kidnapping