Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

59 reviews

mfrank's review

adventurous challenging tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Violence

tedonome's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Violence

aardwyrm's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

Hits you right in the first book of a trilogy, managing full story arcs for the many viewpoint characters while setting up a longer tale to come. The worldbuilding (definitely the strength of the book) makes the universe feel lived in even as it oozes epic fantasy tropes of noble houses and magic animal allies and such. The prose is evocative and lush and the pacing is excellent.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Suicide, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Death, Gore, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Vomit, Pedophilia, and Child abuse

bodiesinbooks's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual content, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Slavery and Cursing

enriquesjem's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, Violence, Suicide, and Slavery

troisha's review

adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Excrement, Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Vomit, and Suicide

reviewsandreadathons's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death

yvonne_cl's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Homophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Ableism and Sexual content

genny's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

5.0

Re-read before I jump into the sequel! I gave this 5 stars back in 2020, and I'm giving it 5 stars again in 2022. 💘 I'm mad at myself for not taking notes both times, but I was too engrossed in the story to bother.

The first chapter is one of the best openings I've ever read. The worldbuilding is lush, immersive, and yet never confusing. I think this would be a great starting point for beginners to adult fantasy! Because we're counting down to the solstice, there's this constant heavy feeling in the background, like the characters are being pushed faster and faster towards an inevitable...Something. It makes for a great atmosphere, and I personally had no problem with the somewhat open ending. It just felt right to me. But if you hate cliffhangers, get your hands on the sequel ASAP. 😉 All of the major characters have their flaws, but IMO they're all likable and I felt invested in each POV. I absolutely love Xiala and Serapio, individually and together. They have my whole heart!!!

To summarize: Black Sun has great characters, great worldbuilding, and a great plot. This is a criminally underrated series and I can only hope it draws a bigger following as it continues.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Xenophobia, Animal death, Alcohol, Murder, Blood, and Gore

Moderate: Confinement and Genocide

Minor: Death of parent