Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

82 reviews

gustgustgust's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-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

This book shocked me. It was written in the '90s and yet it felt prophetic. If it was written in this year, people would say it was too on-the-nose. 

The story is beautiful. the main character, Lauren Olamina, is such a beautiful, complicated character. The relationships are complicated and dense and tentative. The real shining moment is just the world Bulter weaved. It felt not only like it happened, but that I was watching it happen in front of me. It's not for me to adapt, but it is definitely something that would make an incredible series if given full opportunity to be as dark, grim, and haunting as it needs to be. 

The only thing that knocked it down for me was there was a lot of violence, and I understand that the world needed it so it's just a personal taste thing. I don't think anything was don't to scandalize or be outrageous, it was true to the world, I just got pulled out going "oh no, this is too much, too real" 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Misogyny, Child death, Death of parent, Torture, Classism, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Murder, Pedophilia, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault

mattyb's review against another edition

adventurous challenging hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Violence, Drug use, Blood, Rape, Police brutality, Death, Body horror, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Gore

Moderate: Cannibalism, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Chronic illness, Addiction, Kidnapping, Slavery, Rape, Sexual content, and Abandonment

tayngerous's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Blood, Violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Fire/Fire injury, Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Animal death

Moderate: Sexism, Murder, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Addiction, Drug abuse, Rape, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Racism, Mental illness, Domestic abuse, Child death, Cannibalism, Death, Classism, Sexual violence, and Death of parent

Minor: Incest and Pedophilia

junglejelly's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Violence, Slavery, Death, Body horror, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Death of parent, Slavery, and Racism

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Cannibalism, Incest, Trafficking, Rape, Physical abuse, Murder, and Domestic abuse

keyradiator's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative tense fast-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? No

5.0

This book is really a marvel. Octavia Butler's writing is accessible, evocative, crisp, and visceral; reading her and Ursula K. Le Guin made me realize I took entirely too long reading several mediocre science fiction books from more mainstream authors.

There is a thing or two in this book that are structurally suboptimal, but overall, the pacing is biting and cohesive, the characters have deeeeep stories and flaws, and the world building is some of the best I've ever read.

This book is dark. You can't quite prepare yourself for just how dark it gets, yet, somehow Butler manages to make a beam of hope cut through all of the noise that carries you through. Please read this book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Child abuse, Classism, Gore, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual content, Gun violence, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Rape, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Slavery, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Excrement, Murder, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Car accident, Sexual harassment, Violence, Child death, Medical content, Trafficking, Self harm, Sexual assault, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Mental illness

Moderate: Police brutality, Cannibalism, Body horror, Animal death, Vomit, and War

Minor: Self harm, Car accident, Child abuse, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Excrement, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism

melusa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? No

5.0

This book is fiction and yet feels so real and a telling of the near future. Some of the themes and realities seem far fetched when imagining them happening to the USA. However a lot of what is described is in one way or another happening in other countries. 

I suggest everyone should read it and schools should examine the storytelling, social and psychological issues it brings to light and of course the plausibility of it all with the younger generation.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Cannibalism, Grief, Physical abuse, Violence, Sexual violence, Death, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Blood, Child death, Child abuse, Rape, Kidnapping, Slavery, and Incest

audwild's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Slavery, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Gore, Death, Racism, Addiction, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Grief, Murder, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, and Kidnapping

cynopsis's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Child abuse, Death, Body horror, Murder, Drug abuse, Drug use, Abandonment, Child death, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Slavery, Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Torture, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Police brutality, Sexual assault, and Violence

katrinarose's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark 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? No

4.0

While a little slow to start, this book absolutely gripped me. It’s definitely the best bleak post-apocalyptic survival book I’ve read (although in this story there’s no distinct apocalyptic event, it’s just the degradation of society). It reminds me a bit of The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, and I think it’s impossible Parable of the Sower didn’t inspire it, but this came first and was done better. 

I really liked Lauren as a character and the development of her religion. She is a very stoic character for all the trauma she experiences but yet I don’t find it that unbelievable - between her religious beliefs and the fact that the whole story is her journal she wrote (she could be writing in a more serious tone than if we got a first person POV narration) - I think it makes sense. I admire her a lot. The other characters aren’t quite as well-developed as her but I liked how every character had something unique to add. 

I do wish there was more explanation for how the world devolved to this point (yet they still had to pay property taxes while arson and murder were everyday occurrences?) but it didn’t take away much from the story. Overall this was depressing and full of triggering topics but very hopeful at the same time, and I would recommend it for anyone interested in a semi-realistic dystopian.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, Child death, Gun violence, Rape, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Sexual content, Cannibalism, Grief, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy

specklecommittee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Death, Trafficking, Grief, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Rape, and Injury/Injury detail