Scan barcode
yuyuv's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Gore, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Infidelity, Medical content, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Infertility, Abandonment, Drug abuse, Ableism, Addiction, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer
lindsayerin's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Murder, Rape, Death, and Sexism
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Abandonment, and Alcoholism
Minor: Death of parent and Child abuse
rachel_hoey's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Infertility, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Death, Sexual violence, Rape, Murder, Misogyny, Hate crime, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
javafenn's review
- 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
Graphic: Violence, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Classism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Animal cruelty, Police brutality, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Misogyny
bethantg's review
- 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? No
2.75
Graphic: Physical abuse, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Violence, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Addiction, Classism, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Police brutality and Pedophilia
Minor: Excrement, Rape, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Sexual violence, and Fatphobia
emmagreenwood's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Classism, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Child abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Abandonment, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Islamophobia, Alcohol, Sexual violence, and Suicide
lemonsaurus's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Sexism, Murder, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Rape, Xenophobia, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Sexual assault
Minor: Vomit, Violence, Death, Cancer, Death of parent, Suicide, Racial slurs, Miscarriage, Torture, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Animal death, Classism, Religious bigotry, Infertility, Gun violence, Grief, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, Bullying, and Blood
jlaz_13's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Violence, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: Body shaming, Body horror, Bullying, Death of parent, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, and Abandonment
Minor: Classism, Infertility, Toxic friendship, and Kidnapping
cheye13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The main element that turns the tropes of the micro-genre into something fresh is that Geeta actively wants no part in these murders. She is not the typical man-killing mentor that the trope usually calls for, which makes for a unique plot and some amusing shenanigans. At the same time, the book does not hide the pervasive and severe misogyny these women live through, but strikes a delicate balance between acknowledging these genuinely horrifying events with the persistence of daily life.
A surpsingly fun read.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Death, Misogyny, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Classism, Gore, Blood, Infertility, Gun violence, and Sexual violence
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Body shaming, Bullying, Rape, and Death of parent
While graphic elements such as child rape and brutal killings are mentioned quite a few times, it is always brief and without detail.scrubsandbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The main character, Geeta, is a social pariah in her village because her abusive husband left her five years prior to the start of the novel and they all think that she murdered him. She never confirms or denies this because it means people leave her alone while at the same time, buys from her jewelry business because they don't want to piss off the woman because heaven forbid she come after them! It all starts spiraling out of her control when one of the women of the village comes to her and asks her for help in killing her abusive husband. The Bandit Queen of the title references the Real Life Bandit Queen, Phoolan Devi and she is talked about repeatedly in the book for the sake of making parallels to the MC. I strongly suggest looking up her life story, it is so interesting.
As you can see, the story has a lot to do with misogyny, domestic abuse, the patriarchy that plagues a lot of areas of India. There's a lot of classism spoken on in the book as well. Parini Shroff is able to make a reader both laugh and wince at what the MC and her found family (yes, this one has a found family trope!) go through.
Okay, I know I'm praising the book but why the lower rating? Because there's some ableism and fatphobia/fat-shaming that happens that is mostly just super glossed over or played for laughs. The MC uses it to insult her best friend turned enemy turned ally again and although afterward, she apologizes for her behavior, the fat-phobic jokes/insult still keep coming well into the end of the book. I feel like the author could have done a way better job addressing those issues because even if the book focuses heavily on sexism and domestic abuse/SA, I don't think ableism or body-shaming should EVER be used as comic relief. Because of this, honestly, I cannot recommend the book, but if you decide to read it, you will learn about another culture, but keep in mind all the trigger warnings as well as topics that Shroff could have done better. I would suggest keep an Internet search bar open as well because while I'm from India and understood all the foreign words and customs, readers might not because not everything is explained fully in the book.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Classism, Death, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Infidelity, Islamophobia, Drug use, Fatphobia, Ableism, Addiction, Body shaming, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Police brutality, and Suicide