Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

75 reviews

clemencepct's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Torture, Death, and Slavery

Moderate: Rape and Suicide

jessthanthree's review

challenging dark sad tense slow-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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Violence, Torture, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, and Rape

Moderate: Suicide and Pregnancy

highmarshal_azure's review against another edition

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Physical abuse

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Grief, and Trafficking

Minor: Suicide

bookcaptivated's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Death, Child death, Gore, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Rape, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, and Trafficking

Moderate: Suicide, Stalking, Outing, Pedophilia, Gaslighting, and Homophobia

Minor: Alcohol and Vomit

doomluz's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Somehow this one was even more prescient for 2020 than the previous book. I like that she included Lauren’s daughter’s pov. The segments of the Earthseed book feel even more like part of a full religion/philosophy in this book. Strong characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Child abuse, Outing, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Suicide, Sexism, Physical abuse, Grief, Lesbophobia, Murder, Torture, Rape, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, and Slavery

alisonvh's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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 appreciated that, unlike the prequel, this book is told from multiple perspectives, which gives the reader a chance to see Lauren’s flaws in a way we would not otherwise get to see. I love that we got to see her as a complicated human being instead of some sort of all-knowing prophet.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Slavery, Violence, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Medical content, Medical trauma, Hate crime, Suicide, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, and Gun violence

Minor: Sexual violence

alomie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

3.5

I enjoyed this book overall as part of a duology, an almost apocalyptic world bought on by climate change, flowing into a world that is recovering and building on the first book, but this book was a major change in pace, and a change to multiple POV's. 

I found the start of the book slow, and the middle glacial and uncomfortable the end was good, this is where it really picked up for me but I think this was only because at least something vaguely positive was happening. 

It was bleak, and it was slow, and for me it was quite hard to wade through the book. It was pretty harsh to read and I was finding it hard to pick up. 

I am glad the characters got a happier ending. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Violence, Torture, Suicide, Slavery, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Gun violence, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Car accident, Religious bigotry, Rape, Racism, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Lesbophobia, Kidnapping, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Death, Classism, Child abuse, Child death, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Murder, Death of parent, Cursing, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, and Sexism

ellenwilberg's review against another edition

dark sad

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Murder, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Torture, Suicide, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Trafficking, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Sexual content, Sexual assault, Rape, and Sexual violence

Minor: Incest

leonieschw's review

emotional sad tense slow-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? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, War, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Racism, Grief, Slavery, Colonisation, Violence, Kidnapping, Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Torture, Rape, and Miscarriage

machen27's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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

4.5

There are so many ideas in this book and it's prequel, Parable of the Sower. Both are difficult reads because they  unflinchingly depcit the terrible things humans can do to each other, yet they also ask about how we make the world better than it was in spite of all of this. This book also deals more with parenthood, though to say more would be to spoil it. More than anything though, the book feels important, especially now in 2022.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Sexual assault, War, Xenophobia, and Sexual content

Minor: Suicide

Sometimes one must talk about terrible things. The harrowing world Butler creates is worth engaging with, is meant to evoke discomfort. Do not avoid it because it may make you uncomfortable.