Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

322 reviews

mybestfriendisabook's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

i was pretty interested at the start then it started dragging the last half and was losing interest and wished it was shorter. sci-fi jargon isn’t for me. i enjoyed the character relationships and development more than the plot

trans representation, donuts, music, and spaceships 🚀

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Transphobia

fionamclary's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-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

You wouldn't think that the three storylines of this book would come together well, but Ryka Aoki has meshed them so beautifully. This book is so full of joy and hope.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia and Bullying

Moderate: Murder, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Dysphoria, and Homophobia

Minor: Self harm, Outing, War, Alcoholism, Deadnaming, and Pandemic/Epidemic

thenextbookdilemma's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Transphobia, and Child abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Sexual assault

Minor: Homophobia and Deadnaming

swashbuckling_mathematician's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring 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: Transphobia

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Physical abuse, and Rape

Minor: Self harm

bucketsjen's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Good enjoyable read. It was a surprisingly hopeful story, especially given the premise. I went into the book completely blind, a friend handed it to me and said I'd like it. It was fun to be surprised as certain things kept getting added which you'd know if you read the synopsis or even the back of the book. A 19 year old transgender woman who flees an abusive family and is a violin prodigy... a violin teacher who made a deal with Hell and now has to deliver 7 souls or else her own is forfeit...  

a space alien family fleeing a galactic war and plague

who now run a donut shop . The book is weird, with those things, but it's delightful. 

There were a couple spots where it felt like "more" was needed to fulfill a particular storyline or character arc, which stopped me from feeling completely fulfilled.   A character from early on reappears briefly in the second half

and it gives the impression they'll do more... but then they drift out again until the last few pages

. It felt incomplete. Another character does something horrific and it's not REALLY addressed.

They kill a bigot, that's fine and dandy... but also murder the person the bigot is dating, who they have a crush on, while hating themselves for even liking them

. That was jarring.

They get put into a stasis and don't directly appear again but that's it. I wish something different had been done there

.

The ending is good but on the contrived side.

All that said, the book really was overall enjoyable. 

There's multiple minor plotlines woven in that I loved, and a big theme running through it all of what it means to be human and a person and alive, and of joy and soul.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia

Moderate: Sexual violence, Child abuse, Misogyny, and Death

blue_boy62's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

This book definitely took me by surprise in a lot of ways. It’s got a really interesting mix of genres through its sci-fi and supernatural elements, and it’s a nice twist on a lot of different tropes.  I loved the wide range of Asian cultures within it and how it depicted them through languages and food. I also really liked how it handled its queer and trans characters; it’s not afraid to show the messiness of our experiences/communities and has a balance of both the pain and joys we often face. I’m a sucker for the found family trope, and I really enjoyed it in this book. I was definitely invested in all the characters and how their stories intertwined.  Overall, despite all the fantastical elements, at its core, the story is very human. It’s about connection, community, love, and the power of art, especially music, and it handles those themes beautifully. Definitely worth the read! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Child abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Deadnaming, Sexual assault, Dysphoria, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Self harm

Moderate: Body shaming, Lesbophobia, Xenophobia, and Mental illness

Minor: Misogyny and Alcoholism

internationalreads's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective fast-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Rape, Transphobia, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

domtheknight's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring lighthearted slow-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

This book was slow and thoughtful in pace, and I read it quite slowly as a result.  The narration was beautiful, sometimes kind of understated.  The descriptions of music were perfect (I am not a violinist but other types of music I do).  Also, the donuts.  I loved the different characters, all the varieties of women.  As the plot was unfolding and intertwining I really hoped the ending would go pretty much where it did, and I was delighted to read it.

There's some heavy stuff in this book, in some ways these events didn't feel as upsetting as they might have in a more brutal narrative style.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Deadnaming, Transphobia, Sexual assault, Self harm, Rape, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Racial slurs, and Dysphoria

There's 1 prominent trans character; she is abused by her parent, and escapes from that house as a teenager. She is raped by a friend, and pushed into doing some sex work, which she doesn't enjoy and wouldn't consent to if not desperate for funds. She experiences ongoing transphobic "jokes" and comments. None of these actions are from the other major heroine/hero characters. There's murder on page from a moderate character, and self harm. Those are separate from the trans character, although multiple characters have suicidal ideation to varying degrees.

clairejoanmarie's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Transphobia

Moderate: Sexual violence, Deadnaming, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexism, Racism, and Homophobia

Minor: Deportation, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Addiction, Blood, Domestic abuse, Sexism, War, and Adult/minor relationship

unluckycat13's review

I wanted to give this a chance for the trans protagonist and the author, but I did not like it. 

At the point where the lady with her soul sold to the devil set out to collect souls has an entire chapter about how bad she has to pee, which culminates in her crushing on an alien lady who runs a donut shop with her family/crew-- it's just too much for me. But then, the actual trans issues are so far removed from fictional on the same level they're painful. It's cringey and awkward to watch a teenager try to reconnect with a guy she crushed on at summer camp while he's destroyed by the adult world and doesn't really care as well. 

Overall, I'm just not the target audience. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia and Child abuse