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ktjames1908's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Minor: Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
futureofmydays's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Cancer, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism
le_mur's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Genocide, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Medical content
thebetterstory's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The characters are likeable enough, although I felt that the author misjudged how many times
There’s an uncomfortable bent to the way the book handles its war on an neighbouring land, too. It does at least seem aware that colonization is bad, but that doesn’t stop the soldiers from being called “heroes” and people who “should be heroes,” both by characters and the narrative. The nods at pacifistic worldviews rarely include a discussion of how the Laneeri have been harmed. In fact, it wasn’t often clear whether the book thought that was the biggest problem, or the fact that the Aeland soldiers sent to war were traumatized. And of course it is people from this other land who get no dialogue, unless you count mad cackling; who use incense and necromancy and have “sky-priests” while the main characters remain somewhere recognizable as England even though it’s never called that. Who have no technology we learn of, unlike this not-England, and who are the only ones mentioned to use torture against POWs during the war and have no rules against harming civilians, including children. In the plot they’ve been wronged, but subtextually they’re framed as villains and terrifying, mysterious forces of violence. I’m not sure the book going And War Is Bad really made up for that. It feels thoughtless rather than deliberate, but doesn’t stop it from being uncomfortable and irritating.
I’ll admit I was going into this book expecting rather a lot, so perhaps I held it to an unfair standard. It was fun, and it did make for a good read on the plane. But I also felt nothing during its big dramatic conclusion. I’m not asking that every work be full of complication and moral complexity, but I need a bit more than this.
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, and Vomit
gooseturnover'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? It's complicated
4.0
Minor: Suicide and Forced institutionalization
Suicide is only mentioned and happens off-screen.ninjamuse's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Death, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Death of parent
criticalgayze's review against another edition
I *need* SFF authors, even the ones given less editing and marketing help, to work on this issue of dumping us into story with little or no world-building. I get this flies in the face of conventional writing wisdom, but SFF is a unique genre that needs that work done desperately if you want your reader to understand stakes, which I really didn’t here. Too much was happening, and I wasn’t sure why or why I should care.
Moderate: Mental illness, Medical content, and Medical trauma
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Murder
apocellipse'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? No
3.5
Graphic: Torture and War
Moderate: Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Medical trauma, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Homophobia
csevet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Slavery
Minor: Suicide
romiress's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, and Classism
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Murder
Minor: Suicide