Reviews with content warning for Death - No Gods, No Monsters

Reviews tagging 'Death'

No Gods, No Monsters by Cadwell Turnbull

43 reviews

leweylibrary's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

Listen I know I've heard good things about this book and probably know people who would like it, but it was not for me. I was bored out of my mind and almost DNF'd it at least twice. I wanted to like it so badly though because the premise is so freaking cool! Ugh.

I was about 80 pages in and just nothing was really happening, it felt like build up on build up for a bunch of different characters that are starting to overlap. The time period everything is happening is confusing, and I'm still not sure I understand what the big thing that happened even is? I love the premise, but the execution was so weird in the most pretentious way. Writing confusing shit is not cute or fun if people don't understand it. Stop trying to be a big, bad, cool writer who's elevated and throwing out literary devices and shit left and write. Just write something people want to read.

At about 90 pages in, a big thing did happen, and I was like okay, now we're getting somewhere. Aaaand then it would switch characters and we'd be back to getting nowhere. It somehow felt like the ENTIRE book was a lead up to the second book and that's just insane to me. I finished the last 50 pages or so out of spite tbh.

Quotes:

(I I could break my neck, ) she remembered thinking as she flew down the stairs, her heart thumping in her chest like a wild animal attacking its cage. She remembered wanting to so badly, relishing every moment that her foot landed on the nosing of each step, the worn souls of her shoes sliding dangerously across the knife's edge of each miniature cliff. She could break her neck and she wouldn't have to burn this horror out of her. She wouldn't have to be a good daughter. She wouldn't have to be anything at all. She could be cracked stone and fine soil. She could be a bed of weeds. (133)
"We're all blind," he says after swallowing. "Take solace in that. Choice comes first. Meaning comes later." (279)
The chant is an evolution of an anarchist slogan: "no gods, no. Masters," the original version meaning( I know human above.( It is meant as a call against hierarchy. Ridley assumes that this variation means( i no human above, no human below,( or something like it. A call against hierarchy and discrimination. (327)
As he walks with the crowd, he understands what he had forgotten: that a march is not just a voice against violence and trauma, but also a reminder that even in a cause that is stacked against them, no one is alone. (327)
There's something beautiful and devastating about the sight. Ridley feels small against it: the marvels of nature and human beings, intruding on one another; massive systems that existed before he was born and will continue long after he is dead. What can anyone do against them? The voices around him provide an answer. Like ants, perhaps enough human bodies can form a critical mass, becoming a marvel capable of great things, even against obstacles calcified through years of accumulated resource and power. Maybe. More often than not, Ridley has seen this fail to provide any change. But the effort has value for those fleeting moments when success can be snatched for the side of good. (327)
Even has things change, much stays the same, She thinks. Other tragedies are already queued up for their entrance. (334)

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violerwolf's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious 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? No

3.25

While I enjoyed the concept and broader ideas explored in the book, including Turnbull’s iconic mosaic narratives, the prose fell a bit flat for me.

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scarroll178's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

Such a strange, cool world the author has crafted here. (Or should I say, worlds lol). There are definitely a lot of characters to keep up with, and some are more memorable/interesting than others unfortunately.

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lakea's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

4.75

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bosco29's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.0

Confusing and hard to follow.

Time jumps constantly. Character points of view jumps constantly. So many scenes have something going on in the present, past, and future and switched character viewpoints and locations. It's really hard to figure out what is going on.

I love that so many characters of LGBTQIA+, it's like every other character, but it was almost overdone and with how terrible it was to follow the story, it's like the author hoped the inclusion factor would carry the story.

It started out promising and I loved the premise of the secret world of monsters leaking to the public but the book wasn't about that very much.

I can't decide if this would have been better as several books in a longer series so you can actually invest in a single character at some point. In this book, it's basically an introduction to a billion characters in a billion different timeframes. Maybe it'll come together more in a future book? I don't see how I'll actually start to connect with a character though with how much it jumps around.

The audiobook had potential but the narrator pauses in weird places and every ime the narrator breathes in, it's loud and sounds like he's been jump scared, I know that sounds odd but it was incredibly irritating to hear this constant quick, loud intake of breath mid sentence and after every sentence. I am wondering if this is a book thats better physically read instead. Maybe it would be easier to follow too.

I was really excited about this book but it was disappointing. I don't have the Tok but it feels like another book built up by that platform for whatever reason only to be a flop. I expected more supernatural and was disappointed by how very little this book actually even mentions the "monsters"/supernatural.

TW: This book has a heavy focus on Dr*g use/addiction, mental health.

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caseythereader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

3.0

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spootilious's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

2.0

Read: August 16, 2023
Title: No Gods, No Monsters

Series: The Convergence Saga #1
Author: Cadwell Turnbull
Genre: Fantasy Horror
Rating: 2/5
Review:

I don’t really have a lot to say about this one. I didn’t… NOT like it, but there isn’t much I specifically liked either.

What I can say is that the writing style is beautiful. It is obvious that Turnbull is very talented. However, the storyline and the characters have this sort of vagueness that keeps anything from truly standing out.

From what I can tell, most people complain at how the story jumps around and the points of view shift so strangely. I can understand their point. I suppose I’ve read enough novels written this way that it wasn’t too bad for me. Though I will say with just a small shuffle of one or two chapters Turnbull could have kept the mystery while still making the shifts less jarring for the reader. In my opinion he didn’t quite manage what he was going for.

I will also say that physically reading the book makes it more understandable than listening to the audiobook which is what I first attempted. Dion Graham is one of the sexiest narrators I’ve come across but there was nothing he could do with this one to make it easier to understand.

Overall, not a bad book but not a great one in my opinion. Bit overhyped but love the writing style 😊

Quotes:

N/A

TW: Rape, Murder, Gore, Vore, Body Horror, Mass shooting, General Violence

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