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Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Dementia, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Blood, Grief, Alcohol
Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder
Moderate: Drug abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Sexual content, Death of parent
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, War
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Suicide, Death of parent
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexism, Torture, Xenophobia, Death of parent
There is a lot to follow in this book and I worried about losing track of the many characters or their importance to the story. Sometimes, there are full chapters that are told from the perspective of a side character. Initially, I was confused by this. Why would there be a heavy focus on such random, seemingly unimportant people? But I'm glad I didn't give up on trying to understand what was happening. Every single chapter makes a difference. Every single character furthers the story, no matter how small their role is.
I'm currently under the assumption that the only reason I don't fully understand the jade magic is because this was only the first book and it's meant to come into play later on. However, I would have liked just a little more explanation of that and even the way the shine drug affected those who used it. There were moments that helped me understand bits and pieces, but certain deaths left me reeling because I had no clue what the true cause was.
The political intrigue was what, shockingly, kept my attention the most. I was fascinated by the gang war and what was happening on either side to induce further violence and panic. The ranks of the Green Bones was also really interesting to me and the almost "heirarchy" within each group was equally intriguing. I even enjoyed the chapters with the lore behind the Green Bones and why certain people fell into certain roles - even down to how they approached death or destruction.
While I definitely believe this is the kind of book to read only when you're in the mood for a "thinker," I highly recommend it. I greatly look forward to seeing what comes next!
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Kidnapping, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, War
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Sexual content
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Kidnapping
Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, Rape
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Drug abuse, Death of parent, War
Minor: Racism
The world building is fantastic.
There are complex and thoroughly thought out characters including the female characters which we love to see.
I would just like to point out that this first novel is relatively slower paced so that we have time to soak in the world, characters and plot.
Overall fantastic first novel.
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Murder
Moderate: Dementia
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Violence