Reviews with content warning for Police brutality - The Ballad of Black Tom

Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle

75 reviews

loyddl's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

4.5

A nice book with mostly short chapters, you’ll be able to get through this one pretty quick. It did take me a minute to get into but I did enjoy it, especially as the book picked up in the second half. My one gripe is that the book changes perspective’s half way through. It would have been so interesting to read from the main character’s point of view (Tommy) instead of a side character in the more tense moments. Or at least see Tommy’s thought process leading up to the climax. If the book was a little longer it could have delved further into Tommy’s character arch while splitting the perspectives. But as it is, the book is still an enjoyable read.

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jnehilla's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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juliatindell's review

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challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely incredible. A must-read for fans of horror and/or Lovecraft, and for anyone else willing to face police brutality as the monster it is.

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qarina's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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caidyn's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.0

Eh. It was alright. A lot going on, but it felt almost too much for the shortness of the story. Just didn't get into it.

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gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition

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tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

It was interesting, but I don’t know much about Lovecraft’s stories that this is based on, so I don’t think I got as much out of it as I could have. I think having the switching POVs hurt the narrative a bit. I’d have like to stick only with Tom, versus also the cop, Malone.

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