Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

Rosewater by Tade Thompson

16 reviews

zias's review against another edition

adventurous tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

The time skips in this story were a little confusing as were the scientific concepts at times, but I thoroughly enjoyed this take on an alien invasion of the human race in a not-so-distant future. I found Kaaro to be funny and likable as a main character with flaws and motivations. I can’t wait to read the following books in this series. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Vomit, Body horror, and Torture

saintmaud's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, and Violence

cassie7e's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Fascinating worldbuilding/sci fi take. Love a setting that's not in the US or Europe. Works as a stand alone (thank goodness) though I will eventually continue the series.

The writing has a tone that feels very masculine and unrelatable to me (similar to how I felt about American Gods, though less offputting in this book), but books do not have to be relatable to be enjoyable! The weirdness kept me interested. Also I enjoy a nonlinear narrative. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Colonisation, and Violence

Moderate: Torture and Body horror

Minor: Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Alcohol, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Racial slurs

shostakofish's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.75

 Rosewater by Tade Thompson is the new rec for anyone looking for cyberpunk/alien contemplative scifi but in a new way. The author is British born Nigerian and so it has a really refreshing and new spin on what is usually a super cookie-cutter genre!

tbh i woulndt recommend it for completely new to the genre people because it specifically plays with tropes and is nonchronological narrative so it's not an easy starting point 

also the audiobook has some beautiful voice work but the aforementioned nonchronological narrative format can make it difficult to follow, I had to rewind a lot

also it says 'fuck trump' explicitly at one point

I'd say a TW peruse could be a good thing if you (or anyone you recommend it to) are sensitive to book triggers. But the author is pretty clearly very left/accepting. The characters/plot are just not nice. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Blood, Pregnancy, Murder, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, War, Vomit, Sexual violence, Racism, and Fire/Fire injury

rainydaycookies's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

All the sexual commentary was distracting. The main character is unlikable. It keeps the pages turning, but I wouldn’t say I love this book. Undecided if I want to go onto the next books told from a different characters POV or not. 
Seriously why does this guy want to f every female with a pulse??

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, Vomit, Sexual content, and Sexism

maricasement's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

3.75

I have conflicted feelings about this book. I went into it knowing only what was written on the blurb and was really excited for the story. The story is told in first person and as the main character (Kaaro) was introduced I got even more excited because I thought they were an interesting, if a bit misogynistic, female character. Alas, Kaaro turned out to be an arrogant and irritating misogynistic male character. My dislike for him was increased by being immersed in his inner thoughts and his obliviousness to his faults. However, I do understand why the author made the choice to use the first person perspective as it becomes more relevant and important in setting the scene as the book progresses.
Because of my dislike for Kaaro, the first half of the book dragged. There was a lot being set up at the start as well, and this meant that the book took a while to grip me. Once the book revealed an awareness of Kaaro's faults and the mystery started to take shape, I started enjoying the book a bit more. Don't get me wrong, Kaaro is still a character I dislike, but the other (female) characters, the plot and the world building now have me hooked.
I will probably read the next in the series, as it seems to be told from a different character's perspective and I would love to learn more about the world Tade Thompson has crafted.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Blood, Body horror, Murder, Excrement, Gore, Kidnapping, Body shaming, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Misogyny

Moderate: Miscarriage, War, Vomit, and Emotional abuse

adamjeffson's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Violence, and Gore

Moderate: Fatphobia, Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Vomit, Body shaming, and Gun violence

mar's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

really cool take on alien invasion/first contact! BIG fan the whole "telepathy" thing - telepathy is such a bizarrely common landmark of classic science fiction, and i loved seeing this book build on that legacy while actually adding a "science" aspect to it. kaaro's constant objectification of women was fucking exhausting tho

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Medical content, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death, and Vomit

Moderate: Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Body horror, Child death, Homophobia, and Torture

Minor: Islamophobia, Rape, and Sexual harassment

emilycombs's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense 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? Yes

5.0

Rosewater has a bit of a slow start, but it was intriguing from the beginning nonetheless—and all the build-up was definitely necessary to provide a framework before getting into the real action and mysterious twists and turns. It's a good mix of horror, sci-fi/fantasy, and epic story elements and it absolutely kept me hooked until the end. I'm looking forward to finishing out the trilogy!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Child death, and Vomit

Moderate: Violence and Body horror

Minor: Sexism, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

bookishplantmom's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

This was a fascinating book. We follow Kaaro an agent for S45 an organization with dubious goals which he is entangled with almost against his will, though I would almost argue Kaaro has no real will to speak of… he kind of goes where the wind takes him in many ways.  This character is a hooligan and I did not care for him. This was not however a negative. I don’t believe the author intends for us to root for Kaaro necessarily, he seems to be more of a vessel for us to carried through the story. 

The author’s writing style is captivating. It forces the reader the wrestle with the story as it refuses access to itself. The structure of the book is fragmented and nonlinear.  I found the pacing difficult because of the fragmented nature of the plot but I was enraptured by the world building and wanted more of it all the time. The biology of the world is amazing and I look forward to to seeing more of it in the rest of the series! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Body horror, Medical content, Gore, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Rape