Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

131 reviews

shellbell_04's review against another edition

mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs

Moderate: Drug abuse, Rape, and Sexual content

Minor: Car accident

greatexpectations77's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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

4.25

I really enjoyed this book, and I think I would actually put it between a 4.25 and 4.5, like a 4.4. It did get a little bit long for me in parts, and I also either missed or there wasn't a main moment where

Daunis and Jamie kind of transitioned from not making out to making out.

Excited to read the second one in this series, and I'll be keeping an eye on this author. I did feel like a little bit in the beginning that Jamie was kind of playing the second podcast seat who just asks questions so that the main speaker can fill in the audience on the answers, specifically about Native information. But I understand that that's a technique of learning that's more natural than Daunis just explaining everything like narrator breaking the fourth wall. Also, this is aimed at younger folks than me, and I may not have noticed it as much if I didn't know of the information already. I think this book leaves the reader with a WEALTH of knowledge about Indigenous people in a way that isn't teachy, and that's super valuable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Grief, Car accident, and Classism

Minor: Chronic illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

leafilys's review

emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, Kidnapping, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Car accident, and Death of parent

Minor: Body shaming, Misogyny, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

kirstenpod_'s review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Infidelity, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation

Minor: Confinement

christy15reads's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Rape, Sexual content, and Murder

dragoninwinterfell's review

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious 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

5.0

Trigger Warnings: Drug Addiction, Suicide, Murder, Sexual Assault, Racism 

While Firekeeper's Daughter was written for the young adult reading level, as the trigger Warnings indicate, the novel explores very mature themes. I won't say that the themes are too mature. These are all issues that impact people of all ages and were treated realistically in this work. 

The overall realism is what made this novel extremely compelling. Readers are immediately immersed in the life of Daunis Fontaine, an 18 year old young woman whose father was Native American and her mother is white. Her mixed heritage plays a major part in her daily life as she is very close to both sides of her family despite the scandal of her birth. The way Angeline Boulley balances the impacts of her maternal and paternal sides perfectly. 

As far as protagonists go, Daunis was extremely compelling. She's far from perfect as she has a temper and jumps to conclusions that aren't always right, even as she is shown to be competent and learning from her mistakes. She guided the story from start to finish, going through realistic struggles as well as earned triumphs.

While we follow Daunis through her tragedies and the overarching mystery, we're introduced to a wide variety of characters who make up the community around her. Every supporting character felt just as well fleshed out as Daunis with personalities and lives that felt like they extended beyond the story being told.

The female dynamics were exceptionally well done. Daunis' friendships and familial relationships felt so authentic. They tease each other, argue, lie for both good and bad reasons, and had each other's backs. I particularly loved how sex positive the novel was, which was reflected in how the women spoke to and supported each other. 

This was a solid 5 stars. I'll be going directly into the sequel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Racism, Suicide, Murder, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual content

icspicthia's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

4.0

Blending indigenous culture, scientific curiosity,  youthful romance, and suspenseful inquiry, this book has twists and turns that keep a steady pace. Daunis, the protagonist of the story is strongly rooted in her Ojibwe heritage as well as having an expansive understanding of scientific process. Set in 2004, 18-year-old Daunis becomes entangled in the investigation of meth distribution in her home town. She is usually level-headed and tries her best to balance her responsibilities to the investigation with her obligations to her community, while also dealing with the complicated feelings she has for one of the investigators. She has intentions to be a good informant and protect her community, intentions she occasionally finds at odds with each other. Daunis is not perfect; she has her blindspots and biases based of her past experiences and youth, but she is a compelling character who keeps your attention and best wishes for her success throughout.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Gun violence

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Grief

Minor: Misogyny, Car accident, and Cultural appropriation

samshort's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, and Murder

paulameenas_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? No

4.5

4.5 stars. This is the most intense YA book I’ve ever read. Please read Tw before reading and take of yourselves! This book has such a heavy punch to it and talks about a lot of difficult topics with tremendous grace and thought. The writing is super well done. The best part was the infusion of native culture that permeated every page. Just beautifully done. Overall, I really enjoyed this book. 

My only issue with it is it seemed to alternate between realism and idealism, and similarly from adult themes and vibes to very high school/YA vibes. The inconsistency made my interest in this book, especially on audio, ebb and flow quite a bit. Execution could’ve been streamlined a bit but still I think this was a great and very impactful debut novel. 


TW: sexual assault, addiction/drug abuse, violence

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Violence

internationalreads's review

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

I absolutely loved this until the last 10% or so. I wanted to see more of the case wrapping up.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail