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bootsmom3's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Colonisation, Confinement, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Child death, Death, Drug use, Kidnapping, and Ableism
Moderate: Sexual violence and War
elizaob's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Vomit, Racism, Violence, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Sexual violence
isabelgb's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death, Colonisation, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, War, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Classism, Confinement, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, and Slavery
emcheym's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Rape, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Confinement, Slavery, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use and Drug abuse
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Violence, Death of parent, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Adult/minor relationship, War, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Infertility, Suicide, Cursing, and Death
vittoriav's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Um check the trigger warnings first and foremost.
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Racism, Sexual assault, Vomit, Colonisation, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Addiction, Confinement, Cursing, War, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Police brutality, Torture, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Cultural appropriation, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, and Rape
tiffyb's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
- It was hard at times to keep up with characters, to the point that I did often have to return to the start of the chapter once I figured out/remembered who someone was. I also struggled at times to place where in history the characters were (for example thinking we were in the early 1900’s but we were in the 70’s. But somehow those things didn’t bother me too much, and part of my struggle to remember characters was that I became so engrossed in the last character’s story that it was hard to switch to a new one at times.
- It was hard at times to step into the other family’s story again after becoming to engrossed in one story honestly.
- I do wish we’d had a way for the original two sisters to have met each other or even interacted. Especially since this was the whole premise of the book.
- The amount of tragedy contained in the story of these two families is staggering… obviously meant to encapsulate the experience of an entire race of people rather than suggest that all of these things could possibly have befallen one single family. So I do think this was a bit of a stretch. Still, it felt believable somehow, placed within the context of “cursed families”.
Graphic: Infidelity, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Genocide, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Violence, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Slavery, Death of parent, Deportation, Drug abuse, Excrement, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, and War
hkesslerjones's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Racism, Drug abuse, Slavery, Rape, Colonisation, Drug use, Trafficking, and Sexual violence
maggie_c_m_'s review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Rape, War, Violence, Sexual violence, Racism, Physical abuse, and Slavery
Moderate: Racial slurs, Addiction, Deportation, and Fire/Fire injury
asset_exe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Murder, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Racism, Homophobia, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Drug abuse, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexism, Addiction, and Suicide
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Still, I think that this kind of narrative structure (chapters with an ever-changing point of view) is just not my personal preference. Inevitably (as it happens, for example, with short stories collections), there were certain characters' storylines that I appreciated more compared to others. In general, I found the final chapters (those closer to us in time) less engaging.
There were also sections that I liked but that ended a bit too abruptly, leaving too much left unsaid about crucial events and the characters' fate (and not all of the storylines got mentioned again and expanded upon, further on in the narration).
At times, the book got a bit too graphic for my (I admit a bit delicate) sensibilities, but it does deal with very heavy topics; just be sure to check the content warnings.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Drug use, Police brutality, Sexual content, Excrement, Kidnapping, Death, Drug abuse, Slavery, Racism, Colonisation, Violence, Trafficking, Sexual violence, and Torture
Moderate: War, Child abuse, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Rape, Pregnancy, and Racial slurs
Minor: Suicide, Vomit, Cannibalism, Adult/minor relationship, Fatphobia, Ableism, Murder, Infertility, Bullying, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Child death