Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin

142 reviews

kathyreadsalot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Grief, War, and Gore

Moderate: Cannibalism

farleighelse's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

expands on stone eaters. more on what happens during a season and how it affects environment.

a guardian lost, losing his original drive. starts to care for oregones. Fucked up moon.

child abuse and trauma. multiple POVs. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Child death, Racism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Cannibalism, Cursing, Domestic abuse, and Hate crime

Minor: Sexual content and Torture

yourbookishbff's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-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

The Obelisk Gate, book two in the Broken Earth trilogy by NK Jemisin, built on everything I loved in book one and brought even more depth, complexity and heart-wrecking authenticity to each character. As I was thinking about how to describe the dominant themes in book two, I thought most of Beloved, by Toni Morrison, for how fearlessly both NKJ and Morrison explore the layered traumas of child loss and enslavement. I also kept thinking back to the second installment in Tracy Deonn's Legendborn Cycle, Bloodmarked, for how both NKJ and Deonn use fantasy to literally and explicitly call out colonization and the inter-generational trauma of enslaved peoples. NKJ has been very straightforward in her thoughts on the use of subtler forms of allegory to discuss racism in fantasy (as in, subtle doesn't work). In that vein, The Obelisk Gate leaves nothing to misinterpretation - this is a story about slavery.

At the start of The Obelisk Gate, our main character Essun has lost too many children, has sacrificed too much of herself, and has been hunted by too many of those she once loved, and her grief is all consuming. The tender moments between her and Alabaster destroyed me. And we finally get NESSUN in book two, and it's just as much of a gut punch as we expected. She gives up so much for survival - her "daughterhood," her childhood, her ideas of familial love. Through Nessun in particular, NKJ is constantly pushing us to examine our sympathies. Characters like Jija and Schaffa are head-spinning as we try to sort out good and evil in a world literally covered in gray ash.

And sweet, terrifying Hoa. I love him. I distrust him. I love him. I don't know.

Highly recommend this series and looking forward to book three!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child abuse, Abandonment, Terminal illness, Child death, Toxic relationship, and Grief

Moderate: Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Confinement, Murder, and Colonisation

Minor: Cannibalism

thunderquake's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i really really like this, it took everything i loved from the first book and almost doubled it. words can't describe how much i love the world building in this series, it continues to amaze me with every chapter, and makes me fall in love with the fantasy genre all over again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, and Sexual content

Minor: Cannibalism

claire8's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Death

Moderate: Child death and Child abuse

Minor: Cannibalism

zoiejanelle's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense slow-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? It's complicated

4.0

this book was SO SLOW but it really expanded on the incredible world established in The Fifth Season. the magic, the science, was all extremely fascinating and i was continually perplexed and in awe of this universe. 

i had to stop reading about 1/3rd through because of a few of the trigger warnings i list below, but i am very glad i kept going. 

NK Jemisin has such a unique way with words and her characters are all so tangible and emotive. Essun and Alabaster ripped my heart out time and time again, and i empathized with Nassun on so many unexpected  levels. i cannot wait to read the (what i have heard will be) thrilling conclusion to the trilogy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Animal death, Child death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, and Grief

Moderate: Slavery, Medical content, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Cannibalism, War, and Murder

Minor: Sexual content

savvylit's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.0

(Review is for the whole trilogy but still spoiler-free:)

This series was absolutely riveting and compelling. The Broken Earth trilogy is not only a sci-fi/fantasy epic but also a centuries-spanning mystery. Jemisin's characterization and world-building are perfection. Personally, I do not usually enjoy books with heavily detailed world-building, but my interest in the characters kept me invested long enough to accept and eventually delight in the setting of Broken Earth. Syenite, Alabaster, Essun, Lerna, Innon, Tonkee, Hoa, Nassun, Ykka... I truly fell in love with each of these often deeply flawed humans being stretched to the limits of survival.

This trilogy is stunning for its honesty and nuance regarding the spectrum of humanity. Among the known characters, there is no strict good vs. evil dichotomy. There are just humans with or without the knowledge to make the right decisions. Even characters who seem to be enemies are more complex than that. Additionally, Jemisin's characters often challenge the gender binary and celebrate love in all forms. Lastly, beyond the multi-faceted people, this series contains disturbing and thought-provoking analogies for real world oppression and hatred. The subject matter is heavy but realistically and compassionately portrayed. I can't wait to read more of Jemisin's work!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Racism, Violence, Death, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

sparklefarm's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Minor: Child abuse

mgewald's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Child death, and Violence

Moderate: Violence, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

some_random_person_hi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Second book syndrome (or maybe the other books in the trilogy were just too good).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Abandonment, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Body horror, Child death, and Vomit

Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, Cursing, Stalking, and Gore

Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Genocide, and War