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oliverreeds's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
SPOILERS BELOW
now lets get onto the antisemitism which i consider the more blatant issue. so there is a character who is reptilian in nature — hidden actually as his reptilian self — who left his reptilian homeland because they were creating biological warfare inoculations against the lower class of witches… now. wow. thats already a lot to process. and to those of you who know things abt conspiracy theories, you know that they all basically end in antisemitism including the “secret reptilians are ruling the government” shabang. so. this subplot feels like a CRAZY blatant dog whistle to these conspiracy theories. now you might be saying well HE was a good character who changed for the better, and i would say yes. hes quite well-rounded but. the implication in this book is that he betrayed ALL of his people. that he is the ONLY one who realized what they were doing was wrong. which to me,,, again makes me think hmm. that seems a little coded.
SPOILERS ENDED
now lets say this wasnt all on purpose. how should we react? well, first off we need to hold the author accountable. say hey, this is kinda fucked will you make a statement my guy? but MORE importantly we need to call out the publishing firm for a) not hiring sensitivity readers or b) not hiring very good sensitivity readers.
aside from that crazy shit this book was a good debut. the characters were compelling, the plot was interesting, but the message was insanely heavy handed which was a little frustrating.
anyway, rating zero stars for racist shit and antisemitic nonsense that could have easily been avoided
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
yellow_ylugbug's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting
pidgepodge's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty
mjscooke's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
It is a testament of well crafted story telling when a novel is able to engage you even when you are going through a slump, a tough time, or are having a drain of focus. The Ones We Burn is one such novel. Rebecca Mix weaves a tale of a conflicted world where Ranka, a wild blood-witch from the north, is sent south to kill the prince she is destined to marry as part of a precarious treaty between witches and the humans who keep burning them. But when she heads south things are not as they seem and the people she is supposed to hate are helping to cure a magical plague that has been killing witches.
Throughout the novel questions of morality are posed and loyalties are tested. There is also a well handled undercurrent of the effects of childhood trauma, not to mention fantastic queer representation and some quippy dialogue. I particularly enjoyed the 3rd act but won't mention why because who wants spoilers right? I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys sapphic, witchy vibes, a dash of supernatural medical mystery and a good measure of violence for a reason.
Minor: Death, Gore, Hate crime, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
snowwhitehatesapples's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I got this ARC before the whole issue with potential racism, reverse racism and “black royal siblings oppressing poor white people” erupted, and because I’m trying to be someone who will try things out first before passing judgement, I decided to read this anyway despite my wariness.
Now, that I’m done, I’m on the side of those who label this book as not reverse racist specifically of “black people oppressing whites” as I’ve seen in many reviews and comments).
Why?
To begin, here’s the definition of reverse racism:
“Reverse racism, sometimes referred to as reverse discrimination, is the concept that affirmative action and similar color-conscious programs for redressing racial inequality are a form of anti-white racism.” – Wikipedia
As a Malaysian, the forms of racism I’ve witnessed and experienced are tied to the races within my own country. In this case, it’s slurs, the “go back to ____ country”, the prejudice and stereotypes against ethnicities. Racial discrimination is even embodied within the policies here. I don’t know much about what racism is like outside my country, but I’ve seen the horrors done to POC by white people on the internet. The shoot first, ask questions later. The instant prejudice and wariness against a POC, etc.
With the above in mind, nothing in this book can be specifically labelled as anti-white or anti-any colour. Yes, the main character is pale and yes, the siblings who are to rule the country are dark-skinned but there is no majority race on either side. The third member of the royal sibling’s entourage is, in fact, “dark haired and dark eyed” with pale skin (page 30). On the other hand, the witches are divided into a few covens and in the case of the Skra, “the only difference was their hands; on brown and pale fingers alike, their fingernails ranged from deep gray to the barest tint” (Page 10).
On the other hand, the siblings’ parents are a witch mother with dark skin (page 120) and their father a pale human (page 87). Their father figure after the death of their parents is a pale human with red hair (page 105). Skin tone and hair colour are, refreshingly, not constantly mentioned in this book. Moreover, to say this book is reverse racist because black rulers are oppressing poor white people would be incorrect too. The black people don’t make any ruling decisions throughout the book. The cut-off trade, the poaching, etc, are done by others (some of the notable leaders of these opposing parties are pale). The only time the siblings do make a ruling decision, it was to unite the people in the end.
Rather, if anything is to be deemed as racism in any way here, then it’d be the dislike of witches toward humans and the dislike of humans toward witches because that’s what fuels the unrest between the people in the book. ‘Monsters VS humans’ is the primary, constant focus here and we see it both externally through the conflict between humans and witches, and internally through Ranka as she struggles with the perception of what a monster (that is, what she views herself to be) truly is. What enriches this exploration of the theme is the diverse characters within a diverse social system, making The Ones We Burn a well-written debut novel.
My only issue with the book is how long it is as the story felt like it was being dragged on in the middle. Nevertheless, I do appreciate how carefully crafted the story is. If you’re a fan of the complexities related to the theme of ‘monsters VS humans’, and if you’re interested in a book where skin tones are minimally, passively focused on, The Ones We Burn is a book you should try reading.
PS: If I come off as ignorant at any moment, then I’m really sorry for that 🙇♂️🙏🏻 (Also ngl, writing all this here is terrifying as I don’t want to accidentally offend anyone, but I also want to be honest.)
Thank you so much Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review!
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and War
comrad3's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Moderate: Gore
marleywrites'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? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Racism, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent
whatsemilyreadin's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail