Reviews tagging 'Classism'

The Change by Kirsten Miller

19 reviews

miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I was very confused about the time line in this book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Grief, Pedophilia, Rape, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Murder, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Classism, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Vomit, Misogyny, Sexism, and Sexual assault

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

First read of 2023 started off with a bang! I absolutely adored this feminist, witchy read. With multiple POVs, but mostly focused on Nessa, Harriet & Jo, I loved to hear their life experiences and yow they got to where they are now. The strength, power and pursuit of justice, a world where all women and girls can be safe  was so beautifully crafted and inspiring, I just I did not want to put this book down. Plus, January LaVoy was incredible as a narrator. She has such a talent for distinguishing voices for each character in a way that is so immersive—my favourite narrator to date! I can’t recommend this magical realism revenge thriller enough & I really hope a sequel is in the works. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Child death, Child abuse, Death, Classism, Suicide, Rape, Misogyny, Trafficking, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Eating disorder, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, Car accident, Body shaming, Bullying, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Infidelity, and Murder

Minor: Death of parent

I

monalyisha's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? No

4.5

My husband LOVES stories about vigilante justice. Recently, when we were watching the newest season of Stranger Things and El struck a bully across the face with her roller skate, he legitimately cackled. I’ve *never* felt comfortable sharing in that kind of delight. This story is the exception. God, did it feel good to witness shitty, powerful men who are used to getting everything handed to them, get *exactly* what they deserve. 

Do I still think the morality is complex, and, perhaps, questionable? I do. But in this compulsively-readable, fictional tale of peri- and postmenopausal women coming into their powers and using them to bring male abusers and serial killers down, I barely flinched.

At first, I was worried that one of the three main characters is a black woman, written by a white woman. But I think it’s done (mostly if not totally) sensitively and that it serves both the story and a deepening sense of social conscience and consciousness. I trust Miller did her research and had readers checking her.  There’s one instance of food-shaming that I thought struck an odd chord. That noted, I’m now free to crow my praise.

This book was a BLAST to read! I didn’t want to put it down! The cast of characters is sharp and lively. Miller’s sense of wicked humor is a joy. And her overall message, that real magic lies in finding connection: connection to yourself, to friends and a community, and to nature, comes across clearly — as well as her darker but realistic message that sometimes, you have to burn it all down to rebuild something cleansed and purified from the ashes.

As far as the mystery, I can’t say sussing out the details was a challenge. I saw what was coming from a mile away (and I’m not psychic, just paying attention). That being said, I’m not a reader who *needs* a good mystery, so having foresight about the plot ruined nothing. And, I think the “twist” was a necessary one — in terms of showing how blame and responsibility can be shared and shouldered by unexpected parties (especially when race and class are factors).

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Classism, and Gaslighting

netflixismyroommate's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I wanted to like this book more than  I did. It talks about menstruation and menopause as a universal women’s experience when it’s not and complete erases the experience of trans women. Additionally, in a book that talks so much about

sexual violence

the lack of mention of the disproportionate impact to trans women and non-binary people is extremely telling and rather upsetting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Classism, and Sexism

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Rape, and Drug use

Minor: Drug abuse

Gender essentialism

lpdx's review against another edition

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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Violence, Child death, Grief, Rape, and Sexism

Moderate: Addiction and Car accident

Minor: Classism

ellenwilberg's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Violence, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, Trafficking, Vomit, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Classism, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Blood, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Stalking, Addiction, Car accident, and Cursing

deezy's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious sad tense 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Death, Gaslighting, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Misogyny, Sexual violence, and Trafficking

Moderate: Murder

bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition

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: Alcohol, Addiction, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Racism, Police brutality, Murder, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Classism, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Drug use, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Miscarriage

Minor: Eating disorder

casreads's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

3.0

This book promised magic, mystery, and a feminist revenge fantasy, but really only delivered on the last one. The women had powers, but they were kind of vague. Nessa's ghost-seeing abilities were the most developed. Harriet was a caricature of a hedge witch, and Jo's powers were the least developed. She was strong and her hands got hot? Oook. There were ghosts, but they were just sort of there. There was a mystery, but it it wasn't investigated methodically with clues laid out - they just sort of stumbled across things. I did like how almost every woman in the book got a fleshed out backstory, and it was very cathartic to see all the disgusting men in their lives get what was coming to them. It was entertaining, but ultimately kind of a let down. I don't think the full potential of the premise was realized.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Misogyny, and Murder

Moderate: Classism, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Violence, Child death, and Death