Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

66 reviews

maissi's review against another edition

adventurous 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Slavery, Torture, Grief, Child death, Death, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Sexual violence, Violence, and Xenophobia

bwwilhelm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

This book does NOT shy away from the horrors of slavery and genocide and war. Pay attention to the content warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Classism, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Murder, Torture, Emotional abuse, Grief, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Child death, Genocide, Hate crime, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Abandonment, Animal death, and Ableism

Minor: Blood

ajelinu's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

I loved this. It's one of those books that stays with you.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Xenophobia

pyromastyx's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Xenophobia, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Trafficking, Rape, and Violence

Minor: Transphobia, War, and Homophobia

cztacks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-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

5.0

This book is so good it made every other book I’ve read recently seem worse by comparison. This book is so good I had to stop reading and screech at the sky at least once every three chapters. This book is so good I briefly considered a career change to become a geologist, or at least getting really into crystals. Don’t be put off by the second person POV; it’s not the whole book, and besides, it’s so well written that once you get used to it you’ll wonder why you ever had a problem. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Xenophobia

zoiejanelle's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

best adult fantasy book i have read to date. a book about what it means to become a parent, to lose a child, and to sacrifice everything for love. an allegory for blackness in the U.S. really cool magic system, great writing (once things picked up) and emotional twists. highly recommend to all fantasy lovers! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Child death, Death, Animal death, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Classism, Genocide, Pregnancy, Slavery, Violence, Colonisation, Gore, Hate crime, Medical content, Racism, and Vomit

Moderate: War, Torture, and Sexual content

valenx's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child abuse, Xenophobia, and War

seemz's review

adventurous dark mysterious 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

Graphic: Gore, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Rape, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Torture, Xenophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Sexual content, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Murder, and Pedophilia

Minor: Alcohol, Transphobia, and Vomit

neni's review against another edition

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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

 I had high expections for this book since everyone and their mothers seem to reccomend it highly. 

I must say, I knew it had dark themes, but I wasn’t prepared for just how dark and how pervasive the whole thing was. I think that’s what took down the enjoyment factor a bit for me, I get that life is hard in this universe, but I kinda hate when authors make us care for the main characters and then put them through nothing but pain and suffering for the whole book. I mean, can’t they be at least a little bit happy? lmao I totally recognize that’s a personal taste thing and not exactly a fault with the book. Maybe if I had read it at a different time in my life I would have felt another way, but I couldn’t help but get a little bit depressed everytime I read a new chapter. 

Other than that though, this book was pretty much impeccable. 

The writing style was beautiful and engaging, and somehow managed to create an incredibly emotional environment and deliver powerful feelings without being super flowery or descriptive, which I found impressive. It was to the point, but impactful? Quite unique from what I’ve been reading and a weirdly appropriate choice in a book thats about stone wielders. 

On that note, I think the greatest strength of the book is definitely the worldbuilding. The magic system (if it can even be described as magic, some cool natural phenomenon turned technology out of a sci-fi novel would be just as accurate to describe it) is superb in its complexity and originality. All of the rules and the way their powers work around them are fascinating to read about. 

The way the author organized the plot and the pacing was stellar as well. She did that super satisfying thing that authors do where the book starts with a bunch of different threads and timelines that seem disconnected but that get progressively closer to each other and it all comes to a head as this “everything is connected” climax. Pretty cool 

The character’s as well were nicely fleshed out. But again, thinking about them makes me sad lol 

Overall, a great read for fantasy and sci-fi fans alike. Was a tiny bit too sad and depressing for me to find extremely enjoyable, but still I don’t regret reading it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Child abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Animal death, Murder, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Ableism, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Vomit, and Xenophobia

shieldbearer's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

A masterpiece of worldbuilding and character study. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Slavery, Child death, Grief, Violence, Gore, Child abuse, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Murder, Emotional abuse, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Pedophilia, Medical content, Body horror, Classism, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Rape

Minor: Cannibalism, Confinement, Sexual violence, and Transphobia