Reviews tagging 'Violence'

New York Ghost by Ling Ma

53 reviews

46jjsg's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.0

Who is this novel for? What was this novel for?? Sometimes there are stories told to just to be told and I get that- I seriously do; however, I feel so tricked into reading this because where's the satire on capitalism and the modern workforce that I was promised?? For context, I'm an Asian American immigrant who is 25F + works in corporate + in the Midwest. You would think I would be able to relate to the mc but the more I read the more I found the mc of this novel to be frustrating and by the end of the novel I was tearing my hair out like that's it?? I don't know if it's because I'm gen z but I just wanted to grab the mc by the shoulders and a scream at her to get herself together it's so embarrassing!!! I don't understand the author, am I supposed to root for Candace? Is she meant to be unlikable? I've read novels with unlikable characters (see: Wuthering Heights) but at least they have actions that revolve around a theme and you learn something as a reader or it opens up a discussion. Candace is so passive and just so emotionally detached literally pre and post shen fever that I just feel like if she doesn't care about her own life (multiple self destructive behaviors) so why should I care for her?? Candace longs for connection and the sense of belonging, but her attempts (if they can even be called that) at building meaningful relationships are so lack luster?? Like I said. Maybe it's because of my age, but I just don't get this. I like contemporaries. I like dystopians. I like nonlinear storytelling. But this novel just wasn't it. 2 stars because despite all of this, the premise is really interesting at a surface level and I'm impressed this was published pre-covid. The bar is low. Maybe I would've rated this higher if I wasn't a asian american woman myself but who knows.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death of parent, and Confinement

Moderate: Violence, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Gun violence, and Terminal illness

savshelfinger's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-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? It's complicated

3.5

pretty twisted apocalyptic coming-of-age. ending was a bit anti-climactic for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Violence

Moderate: Murder

dr_kat's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

I read this tender, troubling, complex, engaging novel and it wedged into the folds of my brain and wouldn’t shake out. Then the world shut down and a plague worked it’s way into our lives. All I could think about was this book. Weirdly, it helped to see how the protagonist handled her situation; her trials and troubles. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Confinement, Gun violence, Abandonment, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

siriface's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Medical trauma

iro_san's review against another edition

mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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: Confinement, Body horror, Vomit, Cursing, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Alcohol, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual content, Gun violence, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Violence, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, and Grief

mirrorbug's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

Somehow I got it into my head that this was a tragicomedy when that is not what it was. Humor was not in the forefront, but it had its moments. I'd like to read it again without that preconception. Still really enjoyed it. Candace is a character I grew to respect more than anything and the worldbuilding was fantastic. It's crazy this book was released preCOVID, you definitely see some similarities there. I think the parts of seeing the apocalypse start to unfold felt so realistic and were definitely my favorite chapters in the book. Definitely worth the read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Murder, Sexual content, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Racism, Chronic illness, Grief, and Body horror

joensign's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Suicide, Confinement, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Gore, and Death

Moderate: Body horror and Pregnancy

sarracenia's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Severance was so different to what I expected. Less a dystopian apocalypse tale and more an account of the multicultural capitalist system we live under, it took a while for me to get over this. Once I had adjusted my expectations I started to really enjoy the author's spot-on observations of modern life. That so much of the book is framed around the death of her mother came as a shock and was triggering at first, partly because I found it so relatable, the way one's dead mother and memories of her continue to permeate life. I found the ending disappointing as I wanted more of a conclusion, either Candace arriving somewhere safe or even her becoming fevered, but this did not happen. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Death, Murder, and Pregnancy

minnxes's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Suicide, Violence, Blood, Gore, Murder, and Pregnancy

ohyeah_karyn's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Drug use, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Pregnancy, Gun violence, Death of parent, and Pandemic/Epidemic