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I really, really enjoyed this story. The plot twists made complete sense and I felt proud of myself whenever I managed to see one coming, the characters are lovable, (I want to give all our protagonists a hug) and the descriptions of sensations were vivid and visceral. I loved every moment.
It was also a stunning portrayal of how people deal with trauma, especially trauma inflicted by one's primary caregivers. Excellent work!
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Sexual content, Medical content, Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Blood, Abandonment
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail
I found the first part of the book boring. I know it is intended to set up the rest of the book so you can understand the action when it gets there, but it felt too long to me. I also really struggled to understand when we were in the present versus when we were looking at the past. If there had been a format change or something to indicate we were not in the present, it would have felt less jarring to me.
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Medical content, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
This book does contain blood magic. I've given it a good, hard look, and I think it avoids coming too close to invoking blood libel, for the following reasons. First, the magic doesn't have to involve the unwilling taking of someone's blood for the benefit of another. While it can take that form, in the form presented as good the blood is freely given and the magic is viewed as a positive thing of beauty. Second, while there are powerful people who take the magic for their own profit, they are not Jewish-coded in any way I noticed. And third, Jewish tradition is explicitly present elsewhere in the story and used as a source of positive strength. Obviously this is something each reader will have to decide their own comfort level on, that's just the reasoning I followed for my own feelings.
The only thing I didn't like was the romance. I didn't mind Esther's romance, though. I thought that was fine, and just messy enough to make me feel like she earned it. What really ground my gears was Joanna's romance. It's okay for characters to be single. She didn't need a man, and furthermore I never got any kind of vibe that he was particularly right for her. It felt like it was shoehorned in because the author thought she needed to end up with someone in order to be happy, and he was the most convenient guy.
Now, the most important part of the review: does the dog and/or cat die?
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Kidnapping, Death of parent
Graphic: Self harm, Blood
Moderate: Death, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting
Minor: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Medical content, Abandonment
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent
Moderate: Chronic illness, Confinement, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail