Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Cantik Itu Luka by Eka Kurniawan

8 reviews

thursdd4y's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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raquelmozart_123's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I wanted to love it so bad but the end could never suffice for all the wrongs and pain I had to go through as a reader (female and non white at that). 

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allyem_reads's review against another edition

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1.0


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thechroniclesofsiania's review against another edition

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

4.5


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imaginefishes's review against another edition

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dark funny lighthearted mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The story is told non-linearly, with a giant ensemble cast of characters who have someone all been interwoven together into the same family, and yet, the story does not become drab nor difficult to follow. Despite the dark matters (such as rape) described in the book, the tone of writing remains lighthearted and almost cheeky, which makes it for an easy read (though the normalising of violence, sexual or otherwise, towards women may be difficult to stomach at times). The story is entertaining to the end, and seeing all the final pieces fall into place describing the choices of characters from chapters ago was somewhat satisfying, but also mildly disappointing due to the reveal of the central piece.

Overall, this is a story about myth and legend set in a real-life historical timeline, where the Indonesian experience of war, decolonialisation, and post-independence is reflected through a variety of characters symbolising these differing themes. My (brief) learning of Indonesian history in school definitely aided in my following of the timeline, and I would recommend readers familiarise themselves with these topics prior to taking on this book. Besides showcasing the overall population-wide experience, the book also depicts the micro-perspective of Dewi Ayu and the tragic fate of her family, which when combined with the humorous choice of phrases used in the book, somehow allows me as the reader not to feel sympathy for them, but rather, view their demise as consequences of their own actions.

Truly, no character in this story is innocent. Crime, immorality, and violence are the bread and butter of the plot, and there are more than necessary descriptions of fecal matter and death. Though, I did not find these descriptions to be overtly vulgar as this diction fits into the overall tone of the book.

I had no clue what this book would be about when I first read it, but I do not regret picking it up.

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shainalite's review

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-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? Yes

4.0

baca buku ini kayak main game ular-ularan

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jiao_li's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-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

Honestly this book was not my cup of tea, but surprisingly I love it! Iseng aja baca di GramDig karena mikir kalo baca buku fisiknya pasti pegel, deh😅 Bab awal-awal menurutku cerita dan gaya bahasanya aneh, tp justru itu yang bikin aku penasaran dan tetap lanjut baca.

Tokoh di dalam buku ini banyak bgt btw, it amazes me that the author can made every characters diverse! And ofcourse, it's kinda hard for me to keep up with all the characters and events that happened in the book:')

Aku suka tokoh utama perempuannya. Dewi Ayu dan anak-anaknya tuh tenang banget, walaupun mereka aneh sih—tp semua orang di buku ini jg aneh. About the male characters.. ugh they were really annoying, only cares about sex and women. Kayaknya satu-satunya yang waras di buku ini cuma si penggali kubur Kamino.

The book has a twist near the end, and IT WAS INSANE! I have to put down this book in disbelief several times. Intinya buku ini mungkin nggak akan masuk buku favoritku, tapi aku bakal merekomendasikan buku ini ke orang lain karena aku suka ceritanya yang aneh dan gila.

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thegodfather's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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