Reviews tagging 'Death'

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

21 reviews

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

maidinnah's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

As spellbinding and progressive as its prequel. As classic as A Wizard of Earthsea is, The Tombs of Atuan affected me more, focusing on a young girl grappling with a paradigm shift and

the terror of choosing freedom after a life of indoctrination into a religious cult

. Le Guin is a masterful worldbuilder and storyteller; her writing is both concise and emotionally resonant. She crams so much depth into such a short book, that it feels like sorcery. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse

Moderate: Blood, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Animal death 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

marlamackoul's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Murder

lilaceous's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

2.5

characters - ⭐️

plot - ⭐️

engaging to read - .5⭐️

would recommend - 

would read again - 

eh. the protagonist is interesting and her story feels unique, but overall it was just a little boring and a little lackluster.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Slavery, and Death

yourbookishbff's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Child abuse, and Trafficking

Moderate: Xenophobia, Death, Murder, and Religious bigotry

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

nytephoenyx's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

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

3.0

This book is… fine. Nothing stunning. I want to like Ursula K. Le Guin more than I do. I like the world building, but I was kinda bored.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

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