Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton

24 reviews

emilyseebold's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Grief, Drug use, and Death

Minor: Vomit, Gun violence, and Sexual content

katewhite77's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

A Book About Venture Capitalism And Gorilla Gardening.

The two don't usually meet, here they do, but is it such a good idea?

Set in New Zealand, a mutilationaire is secretary for minerals under a national park and on adjacent private land owned by the wife of a second billionaire. When the novel opens, the mining has already caused a landslide. 

Then, one day, the secret miner notices someone planning seeds without permission. From there, an environmental thriller unfolds tĥat riffs off Mcbeth.

None of the characters in this are particularly likeable, which makes for a strangely beguiling read as you find yourself routing for them none the less. I think this is a sign of very good writing. 

I don't think this will trouble my top books of the year list, but I am glad I read and enjoyed reading it while it lasted 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Gun violence, Cultural appropriation, Drug use, and Gaslighting

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Cursing, Drug use, Dysphoria, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Death of parent, Medical content, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Car accident, Toxic friendship, and Vomit

Moderate: Cultural appropriation

Minor: Cancer, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual content, and Fire/Fire injury

qqjj's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Torture, Vomit, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, Bullying, Car accident, Toxic friendship, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

mementomoriiv's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, and Toxic friendship

emelye's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Grief and Violence

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

teaganme's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

A bit heavy, but mostly in all the right ways. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Car accident, Gaslighting, Drug use, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Death, Classism, and Animal death

themorsecode's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.25

A pageturner. Liked the multi perspective approach and there was some spiky satire on all sides, ending didn't quite land for me but I was hooked to the last page

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Vomit, Murder, Death, Violence, Cursing, Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Car accident

sapphotoni's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Murder, and Car accident

knkoch's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

I liked this a lot! It's a great literary thriller, and I ripped through it. The plot, and central conflict, is compelling and definitely not simple. Sure, there's right and wrong, but no easy solutions or clear-cut heroes. I liked the way each character was elusive; I never had a firm grasp, and thus judgement, on any of them. I enjoyed the allusions to Macbeth, especially as this wasn't a direct retelling or reimagining. I suppose this felt more in conversation with that play and its themes of political power, manipulation, gamesmanship, and the way those larger schemes compromise human psychology, personal morality, and integrity. This felt just like Macbeth in the sense of huge power struggles (with enormous consequence) being played out between just a handful of crucial individuals. Yet technology plays such a big part in this too, set in our current industrial-dystopian era, very far from the medieval setting of Macbeth. Macbeth was the first Shakespeare play I read as an adult and felt real things for. I remember the power and heaviness of that story shocked me, demonstrating for the first time why these four hundred year old works are still so widely read and relevant. Birnam Wood makes me think I should reread it again soon. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Gun violence, and Gore