Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang

91 reviews

margaretha_eostara's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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

5.0

For me, this was one of those books that gets under your skin in both the best and worst way possible. I did NOT see that plot twist coming and sat on the edge of my seat to see how Sciona would deal with it. Seeing a FMC having real flaws with real consequences was incredibly refreshing. I can't think of many other books which blend themes like power, religion, classism, racism and misogyny so seamlessly into one cohesive narrative that is still a pretty dang good story.
There was only one point in the book where the conversation between the main characters dragged on for a bit too long.

The falling in love bit could have been left out but I didn't find it distracting as, in the end, it was only a bit of a sidenote rather then a whole plot point.

I did love the addition of small excerpts from the "sacred texts" at the start of each chapter, even though they made my physically repulsed (more so because I know there are many real people who believe this exact same crap).

Finally, it was also very refreshing to see the bad guys just get ripped to shreds at the end, with no other reason than revenge. Was it ethical? Probably not. Was it satisfying to read? Hells yes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Genocide, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Infertility, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Cannibalism, and Cultural appropriation

lanctot's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Sexism, Xenophobia, Blood, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Violence and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Body horror, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, Cannibalism, Car accident, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

kammitrout's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

There’s not much more to say than this is one smart book. The parallel to our world today was deeply unsettling, and while the naïveté of the main character was frustrating, the hope in these pages sold me. I will say that the magic system went over my head, but damn. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Suicide attempt

gabsoulutely's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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

"There was no future here. There was only this moment and its isolation rendered it invincible."

I loved this standalone dark academia fantasy. The magic system was so complex, detailed and well-thought out. The worldbuilding was amazing, built brick by brick with societal issues that cut deep - the negative effects of patriarchy, greed, ego, misogyny, sexism, classism, racism. So many topics to unpack with a dash of magic that just added another high-stake power in this book's dynamic.

We follow two main characters, Sciona and Thomil. My favorite character from the beginning was Thomil. I loved his grit, his love of culture, him as a whole. Sciona had a lot of character development and by the end of the book, I was sobbing because of everything she was able to accomplish. 

I feel like this story was exactly what I needed at this time. With the way the world has been lately, I toast to the same thing as Sciona and Thomil at the end, "To hope."

This book was very heavy on my heart and should be given a proper amount of time to fully absorb and go through in order to savor reading it for the first time. So many aspects of hard to stomach moments, including abuse, murder, and sexual harrasment, but overall, I'm glad I was able to bear witness to this story. 

I loved how this story felt really full circle, whenever an author alludes back to moments that happened in the beginning of the book at the end, as well, I always feel so much nostalgia. Like the crossing, the toasts that Sciona and Thomil had made, so many details that tugged on my heartstrings as I watched the characters I love go through so much hardship. 

Such a good book I highly recommend this. This story also reminded me of Shingeki no Kyojin and Those Who Walk Away from Omelas.

Chapter 22 where Sciona and Thomil have a flash back to the night before their world was about to change and they *finally* kissed. God I sobbed. The way Thomil loved her. The way all she wanted at the end was his love, too. Sciona saying, to hope, and him returning it by saying to hope, Highmage Freynan. Got me fucked upppp.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Rape, Mass/school shootings, Cannibalism, and Pregnancy

paosreading's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

rachelh92's review against another edition

dark hopeful tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Murder

Moderate: Rape

sdudley2209's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Death of parent, and War

Moderate: Genocide, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and War

Minor: Miscarriage

elementaldragons's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

If you liked Babel, you'll probably like this book, and if you didn't like Babel then this book is probably not for you. Fortunately for me I loved both!

The themes of intersectionality and privilege were very heavy handed, but, similarly to Babel, I think that's truly needed in today's society. The world and magic system were very well built.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Classism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide, and Blood

selendrea's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

There isn't much I can say about Blood Over Bright Haven that hasn't already been said. The story is phenomenal, the writing kept me engaged, the two main characters are incredibly well fleshed out, the magic system is unique and imaginative, and the themes will hit you like a gut-punch.  I truly enjoyed experiencing what this book had to offer, and I would strongly recommend it to anyone who loves both fantasy and stories with rich commentary on real-world oppression, colonization, and marginalization.

However, I have a handful of minor gripes with this novel. I felt that Wang leaned a bit heavily on dialogue, especially to exposit details of the world of Tiran. I wish that the author did more showing than telling, especially

when it came to the experiences of the Kwen. We hear about their mistreatment a lot

, but rarely is it shown, which I feel would have a bigger impact on the reader. Secondly, I didn't enjoy the scene where

Renthorn tries to sexually assault Sciona. I don't believe that scenes like this should be completely avoided in literature - to the contrary, they can be an excellent tool to build character and set the stakes. It just felt like it came out of nowhere, and I really really detest when a love interest just happens to stumble across the FMC in danger of "losing her honor" and saves her with one punch.

It's tropey and unnecessary.

While not a perfect book, it still was an entertaining and thought-provoking read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Classism

Moderate: Suicide and Violence

Minor: Blood and Vomit

ajslifelibrary's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Police brutality, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail