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summerb's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Incest
Moderate: Blood, Death, Murder, Slavery, Incest, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Misogyny
Minor: Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, War, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Classism, Confinement, Death of parent, Infertility, Medical content, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Violence
ce_read's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Gore, Incest, Kidnapping, Slavery, Ableism, Genocide, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Grief, Mental illness, Rape, Gaslighting, Murder, Sexism, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Pregnancy, Torture, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Cannibalism
Minor: War
anomiques's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Rape, Pregnancy, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
itsnicholaslashay's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Violence, Body horror, Rape, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Colonisation, and Death
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Incest, Medical content, and Suicidal thoughts
fairyollie's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Blood, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Cursing, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Stalking, Torture, Trafficking, Addiction, Alcohol, Colonisation, Drug use, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexism, and Drug abuse
simareading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Rape, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Slavery, Sexual violence, Self harm, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Murder, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Incest, Emotional abuse, Dysphoria, Death, Deadnaming, Confinement, Colonisation, Child death, Blood, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Abortion, and Abandonment
kaylamoran's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
villiljos's review against another edition
- 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? No
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Toxic relationship
eli_is_trying's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Sexual assault, Incest, Toxic relationship, Murder, Child death, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Trafficking, Slavery, and Pedophilia
Minor: Abortion, Homophobia, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide
deimosremus's review against another edition
- 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
In short, Wild Seed is excellent. I don’t know whether to classify it as science fiction or fantasy, as there aren’t really any obvious elements of the former, though I imagine as the series continues in its chronological timeline, this becomes more and more apparent-- Butler herself has said she considers it more as a sci-fi novel than anything, though it's far from what would fall under hard sci-fi.
Butler’s writing style is lean and efficient, elegant in its simplicity without wasting time on needless detail or getting too involved in worldbuilding... something I immediately liked when I started reading this. The complexity rather comes from the character relationships and the plethora of interwoven themes Butler is exploring, which range from identity politics and gender roles, eugenics, power dynamics, slavery and colonialism, legacy and inheritance, aging, and the survivalist animal instinct inherently found within us all. In other words, a very rich tapestry of ideas driving the novel, and ones that play off of each other in an expert fashion, but done in a style that’s approachable and not so allusive as to confuse the reader unnecessarily. Finding that balance can be difficult (and I have no problem with very allusive genre works personally, unless they're frustratingly "high-brow") but I think Butler did that here rather wonderfully— I’m very much looking forward to reading subsequent installments in the Patternist series, as well as Butler’s other works, as my first impression of her is outstanding.
Graphic: Slavery, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual assault