Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

152 reviews

katievallin's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Child death, Racism, Rape, Violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, Bullying, Police brutality, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Slavery, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, and Body horror

Minor: Cannibalism, Alcohol, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury

tiffanykw's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Animal death, Classism, Genocide, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Physical abuse

chthonicgod's review against another edition

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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child death, Confinement, Genocide, Grief, Sexual content, Death, Emotional abuse, Slavery, and Murder

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Rape, Child abuse, and Pregnancy

vivavia's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Bullying, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Slavery, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Torture, Vomit, Violence, and Classism

cookiecat73's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Child death, Blood, Grief, and Sexual content

Moderate: Transphobia, Genocide, Bullying, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Gore, Vomit, Animal death, Body horror, Racism, and Pregnancy

Minor: Slavery, Dysphoria, and Confinement

cptnstphy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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

4.5

Fascinating what Jemison is capable of! The story unfolds in very unexpected and exciting ways. I knew early on that I would have to read it twice to really understand it, and I look forward to doing so. The worldbuilding is strong and the characters mysterious and interesting, and the reader can feel connected to them in some ways despite the fantasy-inflicted differences.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Slavery, Blood, Confinement, Murder, Sexual content, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Medical trauma, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Gore, and Grief

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, and Physical abuse

Minor: Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Cannibalism, and Vomit

drips's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

so good

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Murder, Misogyny, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Child death, Animal death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Sexism, Rape, Genocide, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Hate crime, Grief, Death, Cursing, Colonisation, and Sexual content

lucystolethesky's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Bullying, Child death, Murder, Racism, Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Deadnaming, Gore, Trafficking, Bullying, Slavery, and Blood

Minor: Transphobia, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Cannibalism

lothalbaby's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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

5.0

The worldbuilding in this is so incredible. It's probably my favorite thing about it. The lore, the continent, the gravity of the situation! Just wow. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, Death, Grief, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Abandonment, and Bullying

Minor: Cannibalism, Dysphoria, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, and Sexual violence

abitbetterbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

I’m so sad I waited so long to read this book. I know it’s won countless awards and it is deserving of every single one. 

I think there are a few things that this book does really, really well. The world-building is incredible. It offers complex geography, local politics, history of empire, and social class structure, a “magic” system, as well as noting that this known history is just one of many histories of the land. It’s absolutely brilliant, but then it’s paired with stunning character work. Damaya, Syenite, and Essun all share different perspectives throughout the narrative and the pieces these 3 stories slot together illustrate how much you can root for a character, be frustrated by them, be angry at and for them, the parallels between fear, anger, and grief. 

One thing I really loved about this apocalypse story is that it’s not a stereotypical dystopia where a teenage chosen one with powers has to save the day. As we follow Essun, she’s a woman in her mid-late 30s, she’s a mother, and she’s not trying to save the day; she’s just trying to survive. She’s not a “good guy”— she’s actually been the bad guy and has been told she’s the bad guy, subhuman, her entire life, and that her powers are not a magical gift, but a curse. It’s also casually queer in a way that surprised me for a fantasy book in 2015 (I know that’s not THAT long ago but still) and the openness of relationship & parenting structures. It’s not bound by our conceptions of patriarchy and family and I absolutely love that. 

This book is genre defying and genre defining. It’s everything fantasy can and should be. I cannot wait to start the Obelisk Gate! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Grief, Murder, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Genocide

Minor: War and Cannibalism