Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas

7 reviews

natashaball's review against another edition

dark sad 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Infertility, and Medical content

taliatalksbooks's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

5.0

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas was incredibly moving and well-written. I loved the way this book analyzed the worth of women, and what it means to be a successful woman. While this book is incredibly heavy, I think the messaging is handled extremely well and in a digestible way. While it took me a little while to get into the story, this book utilized its structure to reveal its meaning long before getting to its conclusion. I loved the way the chapters were tiled, I loved the characters, and I loved the way everything wove together. I found myself viscerally uncomfortable with some of the content, in the best way. I’m a strong believe that important works of literature should make us deeply uncomfortable—as that is what inspires change for the better. Reading about events that have creepily come to pass in the years since this book was published shows why it is even more important to vote for the things you believe in. A women’s right to her body is finding tally important, and I love the way this pulls into question the lingering effects of the choice to terminate, or more importantly, not to terminate a pregnancy. As a pro-choice advocate, I believe this novel is fundamentally important, as it depicts characters who feel so vividly real making moral decisions that work best for THEM. I won’t say more since I don’t want to spoil anything, but I cannot stress how important this novel is especially after the HORRIFIC overrun of Roe vs. Wade. I’m pretty sure this novel will live rent free in my mind for a long time, and I hope that you’ll take the plunge and decide to read it too. While the topics are certainly heavy, the ideas are so important to continue sharing, discussing, and using to educate individuals about experiences outside of their own.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Infertility, Infidelity, and Pregnancy

Minor: Drug abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Cannibalism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Grief, and Medical content

amaranth_wytch's review against another edition

adventurous emotional

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy

phoebewerling's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

3.75

i read this book in 2 weeks and i was intrigued throughout the entirety of it. i really like how all of the women within the book are intertwined with one another, and the differences of them all. i love seeing how they have all been affected by the Personhood Amendment and how they all deal w their struggles

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Medical content, and Abortion

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Infidelity

Minor: Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, and Animal death

onmalsshelf's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-paced

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

2.75

One question - was the author high when she wrote this because....what?

I didn't hate it, but I'm also not sure this was successful? I think it needed shortened just bit, but wow this was a timely read. Also the beginning of this dragged and that did a huge disservice to the pacing. The ending was a bit unclear, but that is normal in speculative books like this. 

As we all watch America fall closer and closer to bills like this become a reality, especially in red states, this was startling to read. However, that's the amazing thing about speculative/science fiction: close enough to what's really happening to scare you. Now if people would open their eyes, that would be great.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Medical content, Abortion, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infertility, and Pregnancy

202claire's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Infidelity, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Cannibalism and Suicidal thoughts

npavitt's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

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

1.75

The premise of the book is really interesting and the writing style was interesting. As a woman, nothing the characters were feeling was really surprising but I imagine it would be insightful for a male reader. I feel like a lot more could be done with the ideas of abortion being illegal and IVF banned for single mothers and have left feeling neither here nor there with it. At a time when these issues are so widely discussed and (somehow!) continue to be debated it didn't feel like it gave me a drive to fight which I was expecting to feel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility

Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, Abortion, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Cursing, Gaslighting, Grief, and Infidelity

Minor: Vomit, Drug abuse, Medical trauma, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Medical content, Drug use, and Fire/Fire injury