Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin, Margot Paronis

22 reviews

erikwmj's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Confinement

Moderate: Slavery and Xenophobia

Minor: Murder and Violence

alexalily's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement

Moderate: Torture

Minor: Slavery, Child abuse, and Death

tangleroot_eli's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

I  enjoyed this one until Ged shows up. Then he’s such a patronizing asshat I almost threw the book across the room several times. “Oh, Tenar, you’re free now—as long as you go exactly where I take you and do exactly what I say!” He treats Tenar as much like a treasure as he does the Ring, and it’s super gross.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Confinement

Moderate: Torture, Murder, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Bullying, Xenophobia, and Sexism

Minor: Child abuse, Racism, and Slavery

Graphic: Darkness

abijmieds's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Religious bigotry, and Death

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Death, and Animal cruelty

lyktestolpe's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious 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: Confinement

eauderat's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Murder, Confinement, Kidnapping, Child abuse, and Violence

Minor: Xenophobia and Sexism

saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition

dark reflective fast-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

3.5

 "To be reborn one must die, Tenar. It is not so hard as it looks from the other side."

The Tombs of Atuan is pretty different from its predecessor. Unlike the first book, it has a continuous plot and it is darker. It's also notable for having been a high fantasy book with a female protagonist published at a time that was rare.

I liked how this one was deeper than the first book, dealing with ideas of power and redemption as our heroine questions the only life she has ever known. I wish that it was a little longer and that we'd gotten more from the side characters and these themes. I found it a bit too sparse, though well written. I can see why Earthsea series is considered a classic fantasy and one that still holds up well today, notable for it's great writing, deep themes, and surprisingly inclusive cast.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Grief, Xenophobia, and Torture

Minor: Ableism

onalark's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Confinement, Physical abuse, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Torture, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Racism

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Murder, and Animal death

loki's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful medium-paced

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

3.75

The thing I have loved about the Earthsea books so far is the emotion is conveyed in a book written from a somewhat detached, third-person perspective. Although we see very little of the character's interiority, their internal life shines through clearly via their actions and their speech. Le Guin creates vidid characters who live through and respond to problems that would be familiar to an audience of children and preteens, even dressed as they are in a fantasy setting. 

The only reason this isn't rated higher is because I struggle to read middle grade/YA/etc. and so a lot about it wasn't for me, personally. Also worth mentioning I enjoyed this more than A Wizard of Earthsea - primarily because I felt like the pacing was a lot better in Tombs of Atuan. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement

Moderate: Violence

woweewhoa's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, and Slavery

Moderate: Torture, Violence, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Racism and Trafficking