Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez

24 reviews

dlrosebyh's review

adventurous emotional slow-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

5.0

Simon Jimenez, I was not familiar with your game. 

I am not the same person pre-TVB and post-TVB. I’ve been hesitant to read The Vanished Birds because a lot of reviews said it was boring, and for me, no, it really wasn’t. And yes, it might be slow, and the chapters are long, but the pacing made perfect sense.

A lot of people compare The Vanished Birds to the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers. And if you know me, you know I loved that series. While that series is healing and comforting, this book will tear your heart into pieces, throw it against the wall, run it over by a truck, break it even more with a hammer, and pierce it with a sword. I was expecting a simple space found family moment, but noo, Jimenez had to break my heart a million times. My heart broke for every character in this story.

This book is so rich in many ways. The characters, the plot, the world building, the atmosphere, everything. I was so shocked to find out that this is Jimenez’s DEBUT NOVEL. Only a mastermind can do such. I loved how he used scientific explanations for the progression and the effects of capitalism. Those footnotes really intrigued me.

Character wise, I have a question for you, Mr. Jimenez. Did you somehow go through my brain while writing Nia? Because why is she SO ME. The way she tries to protect everyone and is willing to give up anything just to keep everyone safe made me sob so hard. I loved how she treated Ahro, and Ahro, my baby, I will protect you with everything I have. And don’t even get me started on DanaFumiko because I cried over them so many times.

In short, please read this book. Any bad mouth against it shall fall.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Medical content, Medical trauma, and Colonisation

Minor: Suicide attempt

avacadosocks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Colonisation, Medical trauma, Medical content, Gore, and Body horror

Minor: Suicide attempt and Sexual content

ostenreal's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Violence

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Death, Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Body horror, Murder, and Suicide

letsgoevie's review

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Death, Torture, Child abuse, and Suicide

laurareads87's review against another edition

adventurous reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Beautiful, devastating, and brilliant. The Vanished Birds has a lot that I love: strong character development, an interesting multi-POV structure, and a clear anti-capitalist spirit.  This does not read like a debut novel; I can't wait to read more from Simon Jimenez.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Colonisation, Torture, Child abuse, Suicide attempt, Gun violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Death, and Medical content

teaxmillions's review

adventurous emotional sad slow-paced

• 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, and Physical abuse

kierstyn's review

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

• 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

3.5

very slow paced. 

this book had soo much potential to create incredible worlds out there in space. this entire book is about jumping around to other planets. what are these planets like? what are the animals like? are the people humans? any different kinds of flora/fauna than earth? instead we get taken to different worlds and all we are told is "this one has an ocean. this one has two red suns." maybe it wasn't the point of the book, but I thought it would have made the world building so much cooler. 

there were some paragraphs that could have been cut out from this book and we still would have gotten the same understanding. it does drag in some places more than it needs to. and I think the plot could have gone a lot deeper. I mean the whole middle of the book is just them waiting around...

also I hate nurse lol. love sartoris

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Child abuse

Moderate: Death

srm's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement

Moderate: Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, and Medical content

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Sexual content, and Violence

city_girl_writer's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Death

Moderate: Sexual content and Medical trauma

Minor: Emotional abuse

quinnjuliac's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book was incredible. Sweeping story of finding nonbiological family and the ties that bind us, in a dysphoric future where the earth has been obliterated by climate change and misuse, and other worlds are created and then colonized by capitalism. Really beautiful, highly recommend. The first half seems to be more about the dysphoric world created by the author and traveling through it, and the second half is really about relationships and the love we find and lose, and how worth it these losses are.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Slavery, Child abuse, Torture, Colonisation, Suicide attempt, Death, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Vomit