Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

37 reviews

achingallover's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Genocide, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Murder

melaniereadsbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

5.0

Thank you to LibroFm for the ALC of this book. 
This is a fantasy of absolutely epic proportions.  I loved every single bit of it. Xiala is one of my new favorite characters of all time. I was immediately hooked on her storyline and character development.

I also loved Serapio and his story. There is so much going on there, and he is such an interesting character.

The plot of this book really took me by surprise. There was so much going on, from political rivalries, to religious sects, to sirens and villains and cults and everything, but it all flowed together really well.

Roanhorse's writing is delightful and accessible. I absolutely love how well she incorporates so much world-building in without making it feel like exposition drops or overly explanatory writing.

Honestly this book was incredible and I can't wait for the sequel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Murder

podanotherjessi's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-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

Uhm, wow. That's it. That's the only thought in my head.

Okay, let's try to be a professional reviewer. Honestly, my only complaint for my personal taste is that the ending doesn't really resolve anything and leave open, in my opinion, far too much. This would be less of an issue if I could go straight onto the next book, obviously, but since I'll be waiting, it's more frustrating than enticing.
Beyond that, this is definitely dark, and that won't work for everyone. It never felt excessive or voyaristic; on the contrary, every harsh detail felt incredibly intentional. Even so, this means this won't be a book for everyone. Definitely look at the trigger warnings.
The characters in this were fantastic. I would die for Serapio in a heart beat, and the rest wouldn't take much more time to decide. They are complex and complicated and lovable yet hard to like. I was rooting for each of them to succeed all the while knowing it was impossible.

And... I think that's the most I can say about it coherently. This is a fantastic book, and I recommend it for anyone that can handle the darker parts.

Characters: 10
Plot: 10
Setting: 10
General appeal: 10
Writing style: 9
Originality: 10
Ending: 6

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, and Murder

ehmannky's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

4.5

I found the first half of the book to be kind of a slow start as all of the world building is put into place and you get acquainted to the many different point of view characters and their situations (this is not a criticism of either, it just takes time to do this), but once you hit that halfway mark it just zooms right along. I couldn't put it down. The political intrigue, the wild religious stuff and the cult magic, the wonderful relationship between Serapio and Xiala, and everything that Naranpa was up to was just so much fun to read. I feel like the tragedy of being the subject of prophecy and the person everyone puts their hopes on to save (or break) the world was just so up front and center, and I can't wait to read the next installment. 

Among the many things that I appreciated about this book, beyond it just being a really good epic fantasy, is that the world is so effortlessly queer.

 

It was just as good the second time around! I still didn't care about the Okoa chapters that much, but overall this is such a good series.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Genocide, Gore, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Biphobia, Drug use, Homophobia, Sexism, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Vomit

christalbotheindl's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Misogyny, Sexism, and Death of parent

thebookfinch's review against another edition

emotional inspiring mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual content and Religious bigotry

Minor: Animal death

bookishbutch's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Genocide, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Biphobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence