Reviews with content warning for Child death - The Storm We Made

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan

36 reviews

sheetsilicate's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective 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

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mariyakeeka's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.5

This is a historical fiction novel set in colonized Malaya with a dual timeline (under British colonial rule and Japanese colonial rule). It follows the mom, Cecily, and how her actions had monumental consequences even though she herself was an inconsequential person. This is shown through alternating perspectives between herself and her three children and how each child faces tremendous challenges because of the societal changes and settings that Cecily's actions brought upon. Guilt is a major theme of this novel because Cecily cannot say that she was unwitting, she simply did not question as much as she should.

This book is meant to be slow. It's meant to linger on pain and suffering and really give us the time and space to examine all the ways in which we can hurt. The prose is stunning and, for the most part, it didn't feel unnecessary. It was well used and so evocative. Thematically, it addresses guilt, family, power dynamics, greed, morality and what it means to exist as a woman. I enjoyed the discussion of good and bad and how these are ultimately subjective terms.

There was a point at the end,

where I had wished we'd had a deeper insight into Abel's thoughts and feelings upon returning.

But ultimately, this is a book I can easily recommend once you've checked the content warnings.

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acarolinabelle's review

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.75

This is a sad tale of a family in Occupied Malaysia during WWII.

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shannonlian's review against another edition

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sad

3.75

As others have said, I was so excited to read historical fiction by a southeast Asian author about a place I know very little about. I definitely walked away with a curiosity to learn more about the time period (as I generally do with compelling historical fiction). Unfortunately, I didn’t feel connected to the characters. Their motivations felt a bit shallow to me at times and overall left something to be desired.

All in all I’m glad I picked up this book and hope to read more about this region and time period.

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ayang0321's review

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dark emotional fast-paced

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

3.75

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danaaliyalevinson's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

4.0

Set against the backdrop of the Japanese occupation of

Malaysia, a Malaysian woman makes a fateful decision which changes the course of history and the lives of everyone she knows.

I really enjoyed this book. I tend to love historical fiction that centers fictional characters against the backdrop of world events, and while fictional, 1 always feel like it gives us a glimpse into how this massive world events may have affected real people. This book did not disappoint on this front; in turns towering and intimate, this is a beautiful portrait of shattered promises, family bonds, and the tides of history that hurl themselves at the barriers of safety people try to erect around themselves and their loved ones.

It is a multi-perspective book, and sometimes 1 tound the switches happening too quickly, just as I would settle into whatever storyline 1 was following in a particular chapter. And I felt some storylines converged at the end better than others. But it was still a really great read.

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craftyanty's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative 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

4.25

This book is a heavy read... lots of triggers warnings needed, but it really is excellent for a debut novel. The characters are well-written, and each of them faces their own personal struggles that come together to make this novel a very emotional read. In fact, this was almost a 5-star rated book for me, but the youngest daughter's character became less believable toward the end.
The audiobook narrator, Samantha Tan, was incredible! I will be looking for more books narrated by her to listen to.

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