Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Power by Naomi Alderman

54 reviews

madamelacy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexism

Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, Death of parent, Gore, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Medical content, Blood, and Body horror

Minor: Trafficking, Xenophobia, and War

knupselmaus's review against another edition

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
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Sexism, Rape, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Violence, Trafficking, Torture, Slavery, Sexual harassment, and Sexual content

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, and Child death

leaknezevic's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Death, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Genocide, Sexual violence, Child death, Blood, Sexism, Rape, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Torture, Stalking, Drug use, Slavery, War, Violence, Pedophilia, Murder, Misogyny, Hate crime, Gore, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Grief, Vomit, and Excrement

haileearynn's review

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Thought-provoking and well-written. But not something I particularly enjoyed reading due to the dark storyline and reminders of real-world injustices that left me angry and upset throughout much of the book. Glad I read it, but probably not one I would ever read again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Drug use, Sexual violence, War, Child abuse, Child death, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, Violence, Genocide, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Torture, Religious bigotry, Rape, Trafficking, Slavery, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Death, and Colonisation

phantomgecko's review

challenging dark medium-paced

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

1.0

Yet again, I find myself asking why I even finished a book. This premise had potential, but the book is vile.

Imagine Lord of the Flies but on a worldwide scale. The absolute worst humanity has to offer. Every character is a sociopath (to varying degrees). It says people are essentially bad. Specifically women are essentially bad.

I know hyperbole is used to make a point, but this was just disgusting. Like, some possible morals of this story are power corrupts, or feminism is about equality and not supremacy. I guess. 

In this story, apparently when women gain physical power over men, they lose all sense of morals, get significantly more stupid, and suddenly super into cults and cocaine. You can argue, "not all women" in this story. It does mention that not everyone is into the sadistic hellscape that's created. But like, obviously enough women that earth turns into a sadistic hellscape.

Also, offensive that women are in power for a mere five years or so before they blow up the entire planet. We made it through decades of the cold war with "men in charge." It perpetuates the hateful idea that women are "too emotional" and not to be trusted with diplomacy or rational thought.

Would some people abuse a power like this? Yes. The revenge stories ring plausible. But to switch all the way over to being "as bad as men" have ever been (IN FIVE YEARS) is pessimistic garbage. Author obviously has no faith in humanity. Depressing, nihilistic bs.

Like...women don't all secretly hate men. In reality, many women have healthy relationships with men either as friends or lovers. Women aren't just pretending to like men because they're being subjugated or whatever. I cannot fully express how detestable Alderman's vision of women is.

There are multiple rape scenes, one of them explicit. Again, I get that a point is being made, but it's vile.

I'm giving this the benefit of the doubt re: the voice in Mother Eve's head. Girl is schizophrenic and not being visited by a higher power. The implications otherwise are just really nasty.

And finally, I believe there is a balance to be found in profanity. For maximum effect, it should be used strategically. "But that's how people talk" --I don't care. In fiction, characters don't always talk the way real people do. And having the f word repeated willy nilly honestly lends a childish tone to the book. Like the author is a kid that's so excited to learn a new swear. Grow up. Learn nuance.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Sexual assault, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Confinement, Drug abuse, Sexism, Body horror, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, War, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, and Trafficking

readinbythesea's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

I mean, wow. I don’t know what to think. This book made me feel so disgusted with the human race. Whoever is on top will eventually abuse their power, and it’s disgusting. The violence descriptions, the rapes, the deaths, so futile, and as is said in the book, happens just because it can. It was a difficult novel to finish because of it. I only realized at the end that the archeological finds weren’t from our timeline, but that this book was written from a future point of view (because I skipped over the letter in the beginning oops) but I thought that was really clever. Could tell the Atwood influence there since something similar happens in Handmaid’s Tale. What was disappointing was that the only solution was a Noah’s Arc situation. I mean, our world is fucked up, not to the book’s extent but still, war is not a solution. Would have been more appreciative if the book gave me a glimmer of hope for a future equal society at the end, but maybe that’s too much to hope for in such books…

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Rape, Sexual harassment, Torture, Sexual violence, Murder, and Pedophilia

kk_gotit_goinon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book is incredible. I can't tell much without spoilers but it's awesome and I highly recommend it! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Hate crime, Addiction, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Slavery, Torture, War, Violence, Abandonment, Classism, Death, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexism, Drug abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

lesemaus2303's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Death, Bullying, Child death, Blood, Genocide, and Torture

cjblandford's review

adventurous challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Ultimately this book is about the corruption people endure when they hold power. There were some interesting concepts here, but because of the way it was written, I never fully connected with the characters. They felt a little shallow. I think this is a product of the book being presented as someone in the far future's research manuscript. I always felt like I was one or two steps removed from the characters and someone was describing their actions, but not their full emotional spectrum. So I never truly felt invested in them as people. I came the closest to caring about Roxy on a deeper level, but I still never felt truly invested in her story. 

I liked the concept of the victors writing the history, and how prehistory is nothing more than circumstantial evidence and hypothesis. The old cliche about those who control the past also control the future rings true here. But back to the main point of the book: absolute power corrupts absolutely. I felt that it was a bit heavy-handed with the violence, but as soon as women gained more power than men in this novel, all of the violence that men did to women in the past, were revisited to them, only more so. The book was not subtle about making its point. Its just too bad the execution of this concept wasn't as solid as it could have been. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Religious bigotry, Rape, Body horror, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Blood, Sexual assault, Sexism, Death of parent, and Sexual content

hannahmdejong's review

dark tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death, Violence, Torture, Death, Rape, War, and Sexual violence