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devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Medical content, Antisemitism, Blood, Death, Body horror, Confinement, Gore, Child death, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
ezwolf's review
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
5.0
I have a lot emotions about this book. Starting first with the letter from the author:
"The first books I read featuring Jewish characters were Holocaust books. Desperate to see myself reflected on the page, I clung to those crumbs of representation. At least, until the fourth grade, when my class read a Holocaust book and everyone in the room turned to look at me - the only Jewish student. That was one of the first times I sensed I didn't quite belong."
Without even having started the book I was already so attached. This experience of otherness I know other Jews experienced as children. Since starting to read again, I've enthusiastically devoured any books with Jewish characters that don't focus on the Holocaust simply those books were all I had as a child and reading them now has only gotten harder.
There's also the dedication, "Dedicated to every reader who's ever wanted to punch a Nazi." which this book very much embodies. Vera punches so many Nazis and it is so satisfying. This story doesn't shy away from the horrors of the Holocaust, but it has a strong focus is on vengeance and retribution in a way that I loved. I could have read another 300 pages of Vera just crushing Nazis with her bare hands.
I also have very strong feelings about the choice to name Ezra's daughter Chaya, a name that means life, and with her death, Ezra brought Vera to life.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
"The first books I read featuring Jewish characters were Holocaust books. Desperate to see myself reflected on the page, I clung to those crumbs of representation. At least, until the fourth grade, when my class read a Holocaust book and everyone in the room turned to look at me - the only Jewish student. That was one of the first times I sensed I didn't quite belong."
Without even having started the book I was already so attached. This experience of otherness I know other Jews experienced as children. Since starting to read again, I've enthusiastically devoured any books with Jewish characters that don't focus on the Holocaust simply those books were all I had as a child and reading them now has only gotten harder.
There's also the dedication, "Dedicated to every reader who's ever wanted to punch a Nazi." which this book very much embodies. Vera punches so many Nazis and it is so satisfying. This story doesn't shy away from the horrors of the Holocaust, but it has a strong focus is on vengeance and retribution in a way that I loved. I could have read another 300 pages of Vera just crushing Nazis with her bare hands.
I also have very strong feelings about the choice to name Ezra's daughter Chaya, a name that means life, and with her death, Ezra brought Vera to life.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Gun violence, Violence, War, Body horror, Death, Grief, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Gore, and Hate crime
Minor: Alcohol, Vomit, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
asiamd's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
First let me thank NetGalley for giving me a free copy of this e-book!
Second, I liked the book but I feel like it was most definitely not what it was advertised as, but first let’s talk about all the things I liked! First, I loved the way the author wove information into the story and made so natural to the plot and flow of the book. I also loved the main character and her struggles not only with the morals she was created with but the new morals she found herself discovering. That also brings me to the second part of what I liked about the book, the questions it made you ask about humanity, life, and personal morals were so cool and interesting to me, again, I loved the way the author also kinda wove history into the book with these questions as well.
Now let’s get into what I didn’t like about the book, first I expected a lot more of her traveling by herself and discovering things on her own which is not to say she didn’t but it was more her being shown things instead of finding them out for herself. I also didn’t like the way the book kinda hinged on the male character, being there to make her feel things when she was doing that just fine on her own. There were also certain parts in the book that just felt unnecessary and kinda took away from the story.
Another thing I want to mention about this book is that it’s great for Jewish representation and while it is a fictional story it doesn’t have real historical facts woven into it!
Overall I’d give this book a nice 6/10!
Second, I liked the book but I feel like it was most definitely not what it was advertised as, but first let’s talk about all the things I liked! First, I loved the way the author wove information into the story and made so natural to the plot and flow of the book. I also loved the main character and her struggles not only with the morals she was created with but the new morals she found herself discovering. That also brings me to the second part of what I liked about the book, the questions it made you ask about humanity, life, and personal morals were so cool and interesting to me, again, I loved the way the author also kinda wove history into the book with these questions as well.
Now let’s get into what I didn’t like about the book, first I expected a lot more of her traveling by herself and discovering things on her own which is not to say she didn’t but it was more her being shown things instead of finding them out for herself. I also didn’t like the way the book kinda hinged on the male character, being there to make her feel things when she was doing that just fine on her own. There were also certain parts in the book that just felt unnecessary and kinda took away from the story.
Another thing I want to mention about this book is that it’s great for Jewish representation and while it is a fictional story it doesn’t have real historical facts woven into it!
Overall I’d give this book a nice 6/10!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Hate crime, War, Genocide, Blood, Confinement, Death, Antisemitism, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Abandonment, Grief, Medical content, and Police brutality
sleepysadpoet's review
dark
emotional
inspiring
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? No
4.0
Disclaimer: I received a gifted copy of this book from netgalley, and in exchange I am leaving a thorough, honest review.
I don't have a lot of experience reading historical fiction, so this was a new experience to me. This book is set during World War II. I am not Jewish, and I will be honest when I say my high school didn't really teach a lot about WWII, at least not about the holocaust. I read Night by Elie Wiesel for my honor's English class in 2013, but outside of that I haven't read many books that are set during that period. My high school basically taught it as if America saved the day lol. I feel that stating this is important, because this book did teach me a lot. It may be fiction, but it's written by a Jewish author and he has experience with antisemitism, which is an important topic in today's world, just as it was during WWII.
Obviously, this is fiction, but it does seem to have a lot more information about it than I was ever taught. It's a tale of revenge, and about tragedy. And it has paranormal aspects to it with the golems, and I really like that. I like that the main character is a golem, and she still has feelings--which from what I know about golems, doesn't seem to be common. I like that she's humanized. I always appreciate that with paranormal/supernatural books. I definitely think I should follow this author, as he is really talented and is wonderful at worldbuilding and writing diverse characters.
I would like to thank Aden, netgalley and inkyard press for the opportunity to read this book.
I don't have a lot of experience reading historical fiction, so this was a new experience to me. This book is set during World War II. I am not Jewish, and I will be honest when I say my high school didn't really teach a lot about WWII, at least not about the holocaust. I read Night by Elie Wiesel for my honor's English class in 2013, but outside of that I haven't read many books that are set during that period. My high school basically taught it as if America saved the day lol. I feel that stating this is important, because this book did teach me a lot. It may be fiction, but it's written by a Jewish author and he has experience with antisemitism, which is an important topic in today's world, just as it was during WWII.
Obviously, this is fiction, but it does seem to have a lot more information about it than I was ever taught. It's a tale of revenge, and about tragedy. And it has paranormal aspects to it with the golems, and I really like that. I like that the main character is a golem, and she still has feelings--which from what I know about golems, doesn't seem to be common. I like that she's humanized. I always appreciate that with paranormal/supernatural books. I definitely think I should follow this author, as he is really talented and is wonderful at worldbuilding and writing diverse characters.
I would like to thank Aden, netgalley and inkyard press for the opportunity to read this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Blood and Antisemitism
Minor: Hate crime
thedragonqueen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Gore, War, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Antisemitism, Blood, and Grief
Thank you to NetGalley for this E-ARC. Wrath Becomes Her by Aden Polydoros was a riveting tale of a Golem created by a grieving Jewish man midst Wold War 2 named Vera. Vera battles with her very existence, the memories of those written in her clay, and literal Nazis. Polydoros is an amazing author, giving us grotesque imagery at some points as well as beautiful insights to Jewish culture. This is an extremely important story as we face rising fascism in modern day. I implor anyone wanting to read this compelling story to check for trigger warnings. YA Fantasy/Horror is the best way in my opinion to catergorize this book. The mysticism mixed with the gore makes it for a captivating read. I rated Wrath Becomes Her 4.5 stars.
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