Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

338 reviews

mznomer's review against another edition

By all accounts this should be a book I really enjoy. I just can't get into it. 

There's so much going on it makes it hard to invest in any of the storylines

The POV jumps around like crazy in a way that pulls me out of the narrative and makes me dizzy

Or maybe it's just not the vibe right now

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, and Sexual assault

lady_valhella's review

adventurous dark mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Pedophilia, Racism, and Lesbophobia

mercapto's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad 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? Yes

3.75

Initially, I struggled with this because of my own personal expectations. I found the blurb quite misleading - it read like it would focus more on the Shizuka and Lan romance, the blend of sci-fi and fantasy, with a trans prodigy as a side character. Even the reviews on the back page made it seem like a fantastical love story. It was quite jarring to expect something removed from reality and to get a very real and very harrowing story of an abused trans girl, even if she found happiness in the end. Especially because it was at the start of the book, there was no easing into it. However, once I took a step back and reassessed my expectations, I did begin to enjoy it more for what it was. 

But I wish the blurb had made the focus Katrina! It reads like Lan and her donuts broke the curse when it was Katrina being her wonderful self that made Shizuka change! 

Aoki is wonderfully imaginative, and obviously has many stories to tell - I can tell that she wanted to pour everything into this book. I get it, a book crossing deals with demons with an intergalactic family and the story of a trans girl finding herself is very unique, is going to stand out more than individual books in each genre. But… I can’t help but think I’d rather have read a separate book for each theme. Or even just demons deals and the Katrina storyline. Or even just a longer book! A series that blends together in one final novel! 

Katrina’s narrative is so much more in depth than the other two main characters, and it’s clear that writing what you know works well for Aoki - even without looking her up I could tell that whoever was writing Katrina had real experience either being trans or was heavily involved in the trans community, and the way she writes these scenes, so matter-of-fact, so real, is where her ability shines through - “The violin had given Katrina a voice with which to sing. And now, that newfound voice was pushing her, urging Katrina to speak.”

It’s not that she doesn’t write Shizuka or Lan well, it’s just that there’s not enough pages to flesh them out properly - they are big concepts and backstories that need a bit more handholding to understand than Katrina, who’s backstory, sadly, we are all familiar with in today’s reality. And so effective is her writing of Katrina, that no matter how well Shizuka and Lan are written, they will pale in comparison to her. I felt I really knew Katrina, but Lan and Shizuka? I just didn’t feel the connection to each other, unfortunately. 

Unlike others, I don’t mind the changes in POV, I feel like with a book like this you need it to understand the complex world. It actually reminded me a bit of Les Mis, in a way, because there’s so much going on and so many characters you need to see into their heads. Of course, it’s a lot choppier in this novel, but I still think it’s fine. I also liked the food descriptions, in think they worked well and were quite immersive, and actually made me want to go out and appreciate all the hidden little eateries with hidden stories where I live! 

This was an enjoyable read, and had a lot to offer. There’s a lot of in depth analogies and metaphors, and I think a very thought-provoking book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Racism, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Rape, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, Child death, and Physical abuse

scmiller's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Outing, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Dysphoria, Body shaming, Transphobia, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Racism, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Rape, Blood, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Hate crime, Lesbophobia, and Murder

Minor: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Self harm, Pedophilia, Gaslighting, and Gore

sirvex27's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual harassment, and Transphobia

Moderate: Racism and Sexual violence

Minor: Racial slurs, Sexism, War, Physical abuse, and Deadnaming

subtlyfurious's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

5.0

This was a bizarre read but so unique. I think it’ll stick with me for a long time

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Outing, Transphobia, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Sexism, Self harm, Deadnaming, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, and Homophobia

cjwitch's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad slow-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

This book is a completely unique reading experience.

It is an intriguing and beautiful mashup of science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary that feels like each character is stepping out of their own genre to meet here. It’s messy and chaotic, and shouldn’t work, but somehow it does. Not only does it work, but the final product is something wholly charming. 

Each of our three main characters knows something of hell. Shizuka, who made a deal with a demon to escape damnation. Lan, who gathered her family together and fled across space time to escape a galactic war. And Katrina, who faces hell every day merely existing as a young biracial trans woman. 

Shizuka, Lan, and Katrina have all lost sight of everything outside their own struggles to survive their personal hells at the beginning. It is only when the three come together that they begin to heal. 

What I love about this book is that the character growth here isn’t immediate or easy. It’s something that comes reluctantly and painfully. There are misunderstandings and eye opening revelations, but growth remains slow. When you’ve spent decades just trying to survive, you don’t leave survival mode easily. 

There are elements to the book that are perhaps underdeveloped, specifically with the alien society and Endplague. But the characters are so heartbreakingly, heartwarmingly real that I found I didn’t mind. 

Please check your trigger warnings here though. While the overall book is lighthearted given the subject matter, there is harsh transphobia and child abuse, as well as less detailed incidents of racism, homophobia, sexual assault, and rape. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Transphobia

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Racism and Homophobia

jesselopod's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

Equal parts harrowing and delightful, a strange, moving and entertaining read with massive themes explored through a very strange plot. It was an unexpected mash up of a lot of genres I like, and it took me a little while to get into it but I am glad I stuck with it, by 100 pages I was invested in the absurdity which would life you up and then smash you down to harsh reality, and kept being surprised at where it went next. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Racial slurs, Outing, Sexual content, Lesbophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Body shaming, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Bullying, Child abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Transphobia

kajoreads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

I love this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Racism, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Deadnaming, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Lesbophobia, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Outing, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, War, Abandonment, Sexual content, Child abuse, Death, and Murder

Minor: Gore, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Deportation, Domestic abuse, and Drug use

raekit's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, Racism, Transphobia, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Self harm and Murder

Minor: Rape and War