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A review by geoblockreads
Reprieve by James Han Mattson
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
3.0
I could feel the point this book was trying to make, but I felt as though the way it was explored and developed was inauthentic.
The concept is interesting, and I do think the author created some interesting and fleshed out characters. The recurring theme of horror and fear was well done, and I liked the critique that going through something like that is completely different from how the characters fetishise fear.
However, the race stuff was not done with dignity or delicacy. I felt as though it was shoe-horned in. There was a part at the start of the book where they critique horror movies for killing off black characters, then that is how they end the book? I don’t understand how Jaidee’s racism played an integral part in that ending, I don’t understand why Jaidee revered white Americans by insulting black Americans. I don’t understand where he picked it up from, and why he is so insistent on it?
I felt off and out of character, and he felt somewhat autistic-coded, which is a whole other can of worms if you’re making the only character on the spectrum racist.
I feel as though the racism should’ve centered on the white characters, like Leonard and John, as they were the ones benefitting in the narrative and the people that cause the most harm to POC in the book. But their racism is only explored peripherally and they are never punished for it. And maybe that is a reflection of the real world, but it didn’t make any sense. The narrative allowed the white men to avoid the ‘racist’ catalogue by making their motivations to kill Bryan based on other things. I think an exploration of the expendability of black lives from their view would’ve been far better done. Rather the story assigns blame on the non white characters for the minor harms they perpetuate under white supremacy.
I also don’t think American authors can authentically write about how non-Americans view America bc it’s giving propaganda.
I don’t know. I feel like this story was trying to be poignant but fell short and made its non white characters scapegoats. I don’t think it had the tact to pull off the subject matter it was trying to tackle. And it was weirdly fatphobic????
Also the prose was a little dry.
The concept is interesting, and I do think the author created some interesting and fleshed out characters. The recurring theme of horror and fear was well done, and I liked the critique that going through something like that is completely different from how the characters fetishise fear.
However, the race stuff was not done with dignity or delicacy. I felt as though it was shoe-horned in. There was a part at the start of the book where they critique horror movies for killing off black characters, then that is how they end the book? I don’t understand how Jaidee’s racism played an integral part in that ending, I don’t understand why Jaidee revered white Americans by insulting black Americans. I don’t understand where he picked it up from, and why he is so insistent on it?
I felt off and out of character, and he felt somewhat autistic-coded, which is a whole other can of worms if you’re making the only character on the spectrum racist.
I feel as though the racism should’ve centered on the white characters, like Leonard and John, as they were the ones benefitting in the narrative and the people that cause the most harm to POC in the book. But their racism is only explored peripherally and they are never punished for it. And maybe that is a reflection of the real world, but it didn’t make any sense. The narrative allowed the white men to avoid the ‘racist’ catalogue by making their motivations to kill Bryan based on other things. I think an exploration of the expendability of black lives from their view would’ve been far better done. Rather the story assigns blame on the non white characters for the minor harms they perpetuate under white supremacy.
I also don’t think American authors can authentically write about how non-Americans view America bc it’s giving propaganda.
I don’t know. I feel like this story was trying to be poignant but fell short and made its non white characters scapegoats. I don’t think it had the tact to pull off the subject matter it was trying to tackle. And it was weirdly fatphobic????
Also the prose was a little dry.