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utopiaandmelancholy's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Blood, Terminal illness, Grief, Death of parent, Violence, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Medical content, War, Genocide, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol
evelasco's review
- 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
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Hate crime, Murder, Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Racism, and Child death
Moderate: Ableism, Gaslighting, Genocide, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Cannibalism
gandalf_a's review
- 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
Moderate: Confinement, Genocide, Murder, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Terminal illness, and Medical content
Minor: Animal death, Alcohol, Blood, Cannibalism, War, Alcoholism, Body horror, and Sexual content
brynalexa's review
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Racism, Genocide, Death of parent, Child death, Murder, Hate crime, Deadnaming, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Medical content
Minor: Animal death, Confinement, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
leguinstan'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
4.0
One of my biggest pet peeves in (post-)apocalyptic stories is the abundance of cartoonishly self-serving characters. I'm happy to say this is very much NOT the case in this series. While several character act in a self-serving manner I never got the sense that any of these characters were inherently selfish and each individual self-serving act is understandable considering the past experiences and current circumstances of these aforementioned characters.
I also love how there are not just two, but several groups in this novel with opposing goals and priorities. It's not just Essun and her allies vs. a singular group in direct opposition to her plans. I also really like that we got a better understanding of the stone eaters in this novel.
My only complaint about The Obelisk Gate in particular is that the pacing drags during the many discussions between Essun and Alabaster. Luckily the relationship and history between the two characters are absolutely fascinating and their discussions are very relevant to the plot. Regardless, a fantastic follow-up to The Fifth Season!!
Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, Violence, and Gore
Moderate: Genocide, Body horror, Racism, Child abuse, and Cannibalism
Minor: Ableism and Sexual content
The racism is fantastical in nature and has very little to do with our real-world understanding of race. Ableism: so this is an apocalyptic setting and there is talk of physically disabled characters being a drain on resources and not contributing as much to the survival of their communities. Not a major theme in the novel, but it does come up several times. Cannibalismzombiezami's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Murder, Death of parent, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Grief, Genocide, Death, Blood, Body horror, Xenophobia, Child abuse, Cursing, and Physical abuse
Minor: Deadnaming
leahb88's review
- 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: Terminal illness, Child death, Child abuse, and Death
Moderate: Grief, Genocide, and Cannibalism
Minor: Alcohol
cptnstphy'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: Death, Child abuse, Violence, Child death, Gore, and War
Moderate: Grief, Animal death, Cannibalism, and Suicide
Minor: Alcohol, Genocide, Blood, Pregnancy, Confinement, Slavery, and Sexual content
some_random_person_hi's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Abandonment, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Body horror, Child death, and Vomit
Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, Cursing, Stalking, and Gore
Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Genocide, and War
studydniowka's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Death, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Colonisation, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Cannibalism