Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher

28 reviews

a_bow's review against another edition

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

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

3.5

This reads like a Grimm's fairy tale and feels more like a summary of an epic story. There is not a lot of world building or any real magic system. It's fast paced, fun, and allegorical. It had me thinking about how the patriarchy really hurts women from all facets of society. There is not a lot of character development and while I appreciated the main character being a 30 year old woman, I felt like she was very naive for a 30 year old. I felt like she did very little in her adventure and relied all on the other characters' skills. I would have loved if she took her feminine rage on a solo mission and just strike fear into people. Like she just snapped and you really see just how fed up she is with men who abuse power, with men who are bystanders to those abusing power and do nothing, and to women who internalize the mysingony and happily perpetuate it, and the women who don't like it but also dont do much to stand up to it until it personally affects them. I want to see her struggle with her faith to a religion that claims all are equal yet creates a caste system where powerful men are in charge and many times exaggerates/misinterprets the text to take even more power. I want to see a 30 year old woman who has seen it all/heard it all, who has had enough of the bullshit explode on everyone and everything. I want her to use her wits to steal, kill, seduce, threaten, barhain anyone to get her way. Overall I found it enjoyable I just would have loved more! It's like if Paris Paloma's.song Labour was turned to a book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Miscarriage, Child death, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Infertility, Domestic abuse, and Pregnancy

Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Miscarriage, Infertility, Abortion, Sexual violence, and Grief

theirgracegrace's review against another edition

adventurous funny tense medium-paced

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

4.25

As a longtime fan of T. Kingfisher's work, Nettle & Bone was a natural choice to read and a very good decision. Kingfisher weaves together fairy tale tropes and folklore to make a world full of fairy godmothers, goblins, and the restless dead. The tale is told with Kingfisher's trademark snark and humour from the perspective of Marra, a young princess whose older sister has become the abused wife of a wicked king. Her task is to kill the king and free her sister, and along the way finds a witch, a dog made of bones, her own fairy godmother, a demonic chicken and a foreign man whose freedom is bought from the Fair Folk with a tooth. The twists and turns of this book are as hard to predict as the mausoleum of the Northern Kingdom, and well worth the ride. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Blood, Cannibalism, Classism, Misogyny, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Murder, Confinement, Death, Sexual violence, Body horror, Slavery, Child death, Animal death, Grief, Infertility, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Torture

Minor: Abortion, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Gore, War, Cursing, and Excrement

There is one particular scene where the main character's teeth are made to dance in her mouth and one of them is removed. It is very reminiscent of the "imagining my teeth falling out" dream but can be quite disturbing. There is also a character in the city which has a "curse-child", which is described like a marionette or puppet that chokes and harms her.

kimberlynann's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Physical abuse, Animal death, Pregnancy, Body horror, Cannibalism, Domestic abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Murder, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Domestic abuse, and War

toadie's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence and Domestic abuse

h_s_bloom's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious 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

4.5

Personal Rating Scale Metrics

• Characters: ✬✬✬✬✬
• Plot: ✬✬✬✬✬ 
• Pacing: ✬✬✬✬
• Writing Style: ✬✬✬✬✬ 
• Diversity: ✬✬✬

This was my first book of 2024 and it was such a great way to kick off the year!

Summary: Marra is the third daughter to a royal family within a comparatively small kingdom which controls a major harbor/trade route. When Marra's eldest sister, Damia, dies shortly after being married off to the prince in a powerful neighboring kingdom, the middle sister, Kania, is sent off to replace her thereby ensuring the safety of the smaller kingdom. Fearing the possibility of Kania failing to produce a male heir, Marra is sent to a nunnery for safe-keeping. Marra is content with life as a nun, busying herself with embroidery and other tasks perhaps not suited to a princess. Upon the birth of Kania's first child, a daughter, Marra learns the truth of Kania's predicament and vows to save her.

Marra is such a lovable and engaging character with such a fun voice and I appreciate that she is a bit older than your typical MC at 30 years old. She really is such a joy to follow along with throughout her adventures giving her honest and bemused commentary along the way. The author does a great job with balancing humor throughout the story despite the serious nature of Marra's quest (Spoiler :

Marra learns that the prince is subjecting Kania to psychological/physical/sexual abuse which only abates while Kania herself is pregnant. As such Kania endures several failed pregnancies which are taking their toll on her body. It is believed that the abuse will worsen once a male heir is produced and she is 'no longer needed'

). Marra is joined on her quest by a grumpy gravewitch and her demon-chicken familiar, a disgraced soldier previously kidnapped and enslaved by the fae, and her own fairy god mother who is not entirely who she presents herself to be.

This book is very much what it promises itself to be in that it is ripe with fairy tale vibes but in the brothers grimm kind of way. There are occasions in which the pacing just seems a little off in that some storylines read as side-quests for lack of a better term. There also it a bit of time-jumping in the beginning of the book which I don't really agree needed to be there. I think Kingfisher may have been trying to grab the readers with a dark and spooky intro where Marra is creating Bone Dog, but I honestly think I would have preferred this book be a bit more chronological. That being said, I was never bored! The writing style is incredibly atmospheric and engaging, I wanted to keep reading all the way up until the end!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Sexism, and Pregnancy

Minor: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child death, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

tm400's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• 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

4.0

really liked this! it was a pretty typical epic story of a ragtag group of people (and animals) on a big journey for a common goal. i loved the end goal of their trip and how it all unraveled. it was a little darker than i expected but in a positive way! i wish we had a little more happen between marra and fenris but it was a great story. giving this 4/5 stars! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Sexual violence, and Injury/Injury detail

rhia_reads's review

adventurous dark funny medium-paced

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

5.0

This book is amazing. More people need to be talking about this book! A great little standalone and quick read.
Had me giggling quite a few times! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Physical abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, and Miscarriage

Minor: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Vomit, and Sexual violence

bethfern04's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Grief, and Pregnancy

prosenheim's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Death and Misogyny

Minor: Abortion, Cannibalism, Child death, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

gloomi_sundai's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.25

This book was okay, like it was just okay? I think it made for an interesting story, the whole saving my sister from her abuser plot, that was really the highlight of the story. The found family aspect I was a bit less excited about, especially when

the MC and the guy get together at the end it was like... okay...

I dont remember much from the book so I think thats telling

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Sexual violence