Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

5 reviews

lorriss's review against another edition

emotional tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Death of parent, Dementia, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Grief, Lesbophobia, Murder, Suicide, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Drug abuse, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic, Pregnancy, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Blood, Alcohol, Animal death, Child death, Classism, War, Child abuse, Cannibalism, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Excrement, Colonisation, and Slavery

thedukeofpuke_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Lesbophobia, Miscarriage, Homophobia, Infertility, Grief, Sexism, Racism, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Blood and Excrement

amylovesbooksandyarn's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.0

I hadn't heard of this book untill my close friend told me she was doing a buddy read and read me the synopsis and I was intrigued. (She also had a beautiful versions with spayed edges of bees and I am a sucker for a pretty book) 

That this was based a real phenomenon that occured in the 16th century and was so odd and mysterious it drew me in. 

This is not a happy book but it was a beautiful book.  The author is also a poet and her writing style whilst not written as a poem is very descriptive and rich.  In the authors note it draws links between the attitudes of the 16th century and current times and I feel that makes it even more sad. 

I am now hoping to read the Mercies by the same author.  . 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Blood, Suicide, Mental illness, Homophobia, Death of parent, Miscarriage, and Religious bigotry

jesselynn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

A very emotive and dramatic story set in and around Strasbourg in 1518, at the time of the infamous Dancing Plague.

We follow Lisbet, a heavily pregnant young woman who keeps bees alongside her husband and mother-in-law. Lisbet is desperate for her unborn child's survival, due to multiple previous miscarriages, which wounds her and familial relationships deeply. When her husband's sister Agnethe returns from seven years in the mountains atoning for a mysterious sin, the path of her life is forever changed.

The content is very emotionally stimulating, with really moving and detailed language and a narrative that is very centred around Lisbet's feelings and emotional state. The cast of characters are interesting, with Lisbet's sister-in-law Nethe being a favourite of mine. The story explores a very harrowing sapphic relationship, as well as themes of religious fervour, immigration and xenophobia. The story is not an account of the Dancing Plague as such, but the events of the summer and strange event are an atmospheric setting, the rhythm of the dance weaved throughout Lisbet's story in interludes. The novel is much more character focused than a simple retelling, which I liked. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, especially women's historical fiction. Tread carefully if pregnancy, infertility and miscarriage is a trigger point for you. 

Thanks to Picador for the reading copy in exchange for an honest review. I'll definitely be recommending this one to my customers and am looking forward to future works from Kiran Millwood Hargrave!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Misogyny, Animal death, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual content, Confinement, Death of parent, Infertility, Blood, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Classism, and Miscarriage

adafrobinson's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

 *Jo March voice* "Women!"

This deserves a better review than I can write. I only picked it up because I loved studying the dancing plague at university and would have been perfectly content reading an average telling of it, but this was something else. A hot, sticky, glorious masterpiece. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Lesbophobia, Violence, Blood, Forced institutionalization, and Racial slurs