Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

284 reviews

badbadwolf's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Murder

Moderate: Slavery, Rape, Pedophilia, Gun violence, Blood, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Trafficking, Racism, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Child death, Cannibalism, Kidnapping, Gore, Drug abuse, and Animal death

gabriella_'s review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

• 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? It's complicated

4.25

This was a great introduction into Octavia Butler for me. The writing style was gripping and the characters were fantastic. The plot was heavy but in a realistic way (especially for a dystopian, it made sense and is even more eerie to read in 2024). I wasn’t a big fan of the “starting a religion” stuff, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Vomit, Ableism, Animal death, Classism, Drug use, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Body horror, Abortion, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Cannibalism, Cursing, Death of parent, Infidelity, Child death, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Pedophilia, Grief, Infertility, Mental illness, Gore, Gun violence, Sexual assault, War, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Sexual content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Violence

yesthattom's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful 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: Panic attacks/disorders, Addiction, Xenophobia, War, Violence, Sexual violence, Rape, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Trafficking, Murder, Medical trauma, Torture, Slavery, Sexual assault, Racism, and Mass/school shootings

jayjayjers's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Violence

Moderate: Death of parent, Animal death, Xenophobia, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Slavery, and Rape

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual content, and Child abuse

solarpunkopossum's review against another edition

I liked this book a lot! But it’s very dark. Extremely dark. Bad things happen a lot. It’s a valuable commentary on our present state, and I would like to come back to this. But right now my mental health isn’t in the place to finish this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Cursing, Child death, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Drug use, Violence, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, Physical abuse, and Death of parent

arifairy's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Suicide, Slavery, Sexual content, and Child abuse

rmperezpadilla's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, Child death, and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Slavery

Minor: Racism

ams5x9's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense 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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Rape, Animal cruelty, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, Sexual assault, and Blood

Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, Abandonment, Blood, and Animal death

Minor: Incest, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Cannibalism, Racism, and Police brutality

nogoodtulip's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

5.0

Set in a very plausible and not-too-distant future collapsed american society, Parable of the Sower is enthralling in its character’s struggle for survival against a world consumed by destitution, violence, and corporate oppression. The blossoming of our main character Lauren’s new religion of Earthseed and the vision of a new and transformed world that it brings drives the story forward and teaches us that we cannot build something new without first risking everything.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Cannibalism, Addiction, Drug use, and Xenophobia

reneerianne's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? No

4.5

What an amazing read. I can see why this is compared to the likes of 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale, though I did find it to be a completely different type of book. I loved reading this in the year 2024, which is also where the story begins. Though we're not quite there yet in terms of climate change and climate refugees, we are, unfortunately, well on our way to get there. It's remarkable how (despite the dates) this story stands the test of time. It still feels very modern even though the book is more than 30 years old. I really loved the characters and the elements of found family. I did find some scenes hard to read due to the violence and injuries (check the trigger warnings!), but they added to the overall feeling of powerlessness. I didn't relate as much to the parts about religion. However, I think it's very fitting to turn to religion in dire situations like these. Overall, a very good read and plausible exploration of what might happen over the next couple of decades as climate change gets worse... Now onto a happier read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Death, Gun violence, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Cannibalism, Slavery, Sexual assault, Rape, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Addiction