Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

88 reviews

imogenclendinning's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Cannibalism, Confinement, Death of parent, Slavery, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Racism, Violence, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Murder, Child death, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy

throwback682's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring 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? Yes

4.0

Reading this book in the year before its action takes place is both troubling and validating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Child death, Body horror, Classism, Drug abuse, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Cannibalism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Addiction, and Slavery

Moderate: Police brutality, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide, Domestic abuse, and Racism

The violence that comes as people scramble and fight for resources at the end of the world is expected but

an 18 year old girl being with a 50+ yo man was creepy, unnecessary, unexpected, and kind of took me out of the story.

corine's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

Interesting take on a dystopian setting, through the eyes of Lauren, who is coming of age and trying to make sense of her life and next steps through a new kind of religion. Lots of trigger warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Alcoholism, Addiction, Gore, Death of parent, Violence, Slavery, Sexual assault, Rape, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Murder, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Cannibalism, Body horror, Trafficking, Drug abuse, Grief, Death, Sexual violence, Drug use, Racism, and Fire/Fire injury

beegster16's review against another edition

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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Body horror, Gun violence, Physical abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Mass/school shootings, and Sexual assault

Minor: Slavery, Incest, and Pedophilia

maameadwubi's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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? No

3.0

This book is incredibly bleak; Octavia Butler was incredibly prescient and the parallels between this book and our potential reality made it even more horrifying/scary to read. I wasn’t aware of what I was getting into when I started reading it and had to put it down halfway through to spark not a the rest. 
Will be dealing with nightmares for the near future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Body horror, Death, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Violence, Animal cruelty, Child death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent

Moderate: Cannibalism, Slavery, Child abuse, Drug use, Incest, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Vomit, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Racism, and Suicide

joharrismay's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense 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? No

5.0

One of my all time favs. I haven’t read it in a while just it’s so good.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, War, Gaslighting, Medical content, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Murder, Pedophilia, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Pregnancy, Grief, Gore, Misogyny, Violence, Animal cruelty, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault

sunschoenmai's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Drug use, Rape, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Addiction, Torture, Classism, Murder, Abandonment, Blood, Cursing, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, and Death of parent

clovelatte's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful informative 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

it’s been weeks and I’m still thinking about this book. Reading this in 2023, the year before the events of the book, is more than a little spooky. We’re not quite there but gosh does it feel possible. I think there’s so much here about the human spirit in crisis and ways our systems of oppression enact violence on all of us. I’ve already requested the second book and I’m gutted that Octavia never got to finish the third. Definitely would recommend if dystopian fiction is your thing and as someone with religious traumas I found it particularly interesting. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Child death, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Violence, Death, Pedophilia, Blood, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Abandonment, Genocide, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Sexual content, Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Slavery

aleksanski's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual violence, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Medical content, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Rape, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Suicide, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction and Adult/minor relationship

tinytrashqueen's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Sexism, Violence, Death, Death of parent, and Misogyny

Moderate: Rape, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Torture, Child death, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Alcoholism