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monsty's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, and Murder
Minor: Murder
akardian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I think you would not like this book if you desire world building, a fast pace, a plot focused book, or a diverse set of characters. I would also advise to look at the trigger warnings (while not major themes of the book, there’s talk of mental health breakdowns, violence, cult activity, abusive mentor/mentee relationships).
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Slavery, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Gaslighting
lola218_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Slavery, Dementia, Grief, and Murder
krispym'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
4.75
Would be 5/5 if not for
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Murder
bi_n_large's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Ableism, Gun violence, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder
ebp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Slavery, Violence, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Cursing, and Injury/Injury detail
becca_w_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
webtheweeb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’m kind of astonished by this book. It starts off so, so huge and completely incomprehensible - like the character “writing” it, you need to make massive leaps and grasp onto the smallest glimpses of sanity to maintain your footing - but Clarke leaves a trail of hints that not all is as it seems so intriguing that I couldn’t bear to put it down. I HAD to know what was really going on here. And by the end of the book, in a way that I think so few other pieces of media have done, the frame is SMALLER than at the start, more manageable and explained and easier for my little mind to comprehend. BUT THEN??? THAT LAST PAGE???? Just completely explodes that and undoes it in the best, best way. The middle place is still connected to our world, leaking statues of people as they are??? As they will be??? Where is the place beyond, and what does it mean? We don’t need to know, but the shape of this book is immense and ingenious.
My only reservation is with the main character - does Clarke as a white woman have a right to tell his story? I also wonder about her intertwining of Laurence’s sexuality and his violence, which was not provided any kind of representational foil or anything to offset that association.
Overall, this book, like Octavia Butler’s, did something to my brain I don’t think I’ll easily forget. In my experience, it is totally original and so, so interesting. I feel like I’d need to read it a thousand times over to begin to understand most of what’s in there, and I’d do so gladly. 5/5
Graphic: Violence and Kidnapping
Moderate: Murder
oughterard87'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? Yes
4.5
Minor: Murder
carojust's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
We are taken through events via the protagonist's journal entries, and only know as much as he knows about the enormous house he's in, with occasionally dangerous waves of sea water and rainfall. There are moments where you can start to guess what is actually going on, and it all leads to a suspenseful unraveling.
I think there is a deeper narrative about appreciating our earth and what it gives us, appreciating our life and those around us, those we have lost, even those we've never met.
Susanna's writing is so rich, yet easy to follow, just so artful. There are even moments where a tone / writing style change is necessary and it helps you appreciate the mastery of her writing.
You'll love this if you are into magical realism, a bit of mystery, mystical practice, and unusual stories.
Graphic: Confinement and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death and Murder