Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - Luster

Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

eilidhbear's review

Go to review page

dark emotional funny slow-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

4.25

Content Warnings

alecrigdon's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.25

Luster is a deeply intimate novel that to read feels like getting sucked into a black hole at the core of the main character's soul. The prose is beautiful and plot frustrating and while it seems to spin in place, defying gravity, I kept returning to find out what happened next, or didn't happen.

Content Warnings

brianareads's review

Go to review page

emotional funny reflective slow-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

5.0

Content Warnings

julianicolls's review

Go to review page

dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.75

I really enjoyed the authors writing at times for this book. And it found it to be engaging. I think i would have liked it less if there was less stream of conscious going on. Definitely a lot of overt vs. covert messaging and writing. I liked the exploration of race, generational trauma, human relationships, and how interpersonal relationships affect sexual desires. I just didn’t find the overall storyline to be very compelling and gripping. Going to do some research and literary analysis and potentially update my review

ADDED: changing from 3.5 to 3.75 stars after doing some analysis and reflecting more on the characters. Would have rated higher if I liked the style of writing

Content Warnings

hannahmayoddy's review

Go to review page

dark emotional funny slow-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

sabmanosa's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark funny hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I enjoyed this book at the start, then found it tedious, then enjoyed it again. It feels like an extremely personal diary, and the writing is sardonic, dirty, and too honest. I didn’t much care for any of the characters except Akila.

The power and sex dynamics made me very uncomfortable, and I don’t know if the plot had a point, but not necessarily in a bad way. I didn’t learn anything from it, I just experienced the book. I’m interested in reading some of her shorter works, because I feel like I would enjoy them more with her writing style.

Content Warnings

megmahoney1's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-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? Yes

4.0

The writing in this book is stunning and immersive . This was a fascinating exploration of identity, race, sexuality, family and artistry. Raven Leilani weaves life between the pages of this book and I feel like I’m truly reading to our protagonists thoughts.

Content Warnings