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mals_library's review against another edition
1.0
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Blood, Gun violence, Sexism, Infertility, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Transphobia, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Self harm, Rape, and Sexual content
maybe_a_cat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
2.25
Graphic: Medical content and Infertility
Moderate: Transphobia and Racism
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
ejs2000's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Death, Infertility, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Grief, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Racism, Police brutality, Classism, Abortion, Blood, Transphobia, Sexism, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, and Colonisation
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, and Cultural appropriation
brianna_moye'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? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma
Moderate: Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, and Gun violence
ricketycricket'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
4.5
Graphic: Infertility, Sexual violence, Abortion, Transphobia, Pregnancy, and Homophobia
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Ableism, Mental illness, and Medical trauma
ynadavis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Graphic: Transphobia, Body shaming, Dysphoria, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Outing, Sexism, Pregnancy, Racism, Gun violence, Infertility, Miscarriage, and Injury/Injury detail
shoohoob's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
All in all, I liked it!
Graphic: Gun violence, Blood, Homophobia, Pregnancy, Transphobia, Abandonment, Infertility, Medical content, and Misogyny
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Self harm
bmaeus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I've seen complaints that this is from the straight ("straight") cis white girl's perspective, but you know, I appreciate it—that's the author staying in her lane. It's an alternate history that features diversity without downplaying QTPOC hardship. North also at least understands how much of a role community plays in the lives of queer people.
The worldbuilding is rock-solid and so captivating. By exacerbating the roots of the patriarchy and gender binary, it pokes holes in these institutions with impressive deftness. In that vein, I've also seen multiple complaints that this book leans into homophobia and transphobia... Are we reading the same book?
The plot was much slower and less intense than I anticipated given the breadth of information and characters. But in the end, it turns out that our protagonist's internal journey was the chief focus all along, and I can't fault it for that. Her relationship with her own body and with others'—as a healer, a woman, and a friend—is deeply satisfying to watch.
The Kid is one of the most compelling characters I've met in recent memory. I do think The Kid's disability could have been utilized more cleanly. It left me wanting at multiple points, particularly the end.
I love cowboys and I love this book. I generally stay away from such literally feminist novels, especially those written by white women, but Outlawed looks at its own world from many different angles and simply asks (with alternatingly gentle and demanding persistence) that you do the same with yours. It's heartbreaking and hopeful all the same.
Graphic: Sexual violence, Homophobia, Ableism, Medical trauma, Infertility, Sexual assault, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Dysphoria, Violence, Abortion, Death, Hate crime, and Transphobia
hmatt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Storytelling
I feel like the author was trying to fit too many events into too short of a narrative. This might have been okay, but there were so many minor events that I think we should have spent less time on, and a number of climactic events that we spent barely any time on whatsoever. A lot of these major events "fade to black" as soon as the action starts, and then we are caught up on what happened in retrospect later on - I was REALLY not a fan of this technique, and I don't think it made sense for the "western" genre.
Character-building
We do get a lot of information on most of the characters but, again, it's almost too much for how short of a book it is. What we lose out on, in my opinion, is a more profound emotional connection with the main character. We don't really dwell on her losses or feel them with her, which is extra strange given the whole novel is told in first-person.
TL;DR
The idea behind the novel is fantastic, but it tries to fit too much in. The concepts it seeks to explore are really only half-fleshed-out and the characters are hard to relate to, simply because the plot moves on too fast to hold space for these introspections.
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Medical content, Infidelity, Gun violence, Misogyny, Blood, Violence, Murder, Infertility, Sexual violence, Racism, Police brutality, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, Torture, Sexism, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Gore, Miscarriage, and Mental illness
Moderate: Rape, Confinement, Transphobia, Classism, Gore, Alcohol, Forced institutionalization, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault
Minor: Animal death and Drug abuse
CWs non-exhaustivedenizens98'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? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Racism, Outing, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Gun violence, Grief, Child abuse, Abortion, Transphobia, Medical trauma, Body horror, Infertility, Hate crime, Incest, Domestic abuse, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Mental illness, Lesbophobia, Excrement, Death, Animal death, and Alcohol