Scan barcode
A review by fluoresensitive
Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
challenging
dark
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
2.5
** spoiler alert ** TW / RAPE DISCUSSION, PEDOPHILIA AND INCEST MENTION
.
.
.
.
I... I literally hate writing long reviews because they feel like book reports, but I have a lot to say. I'll start with the positive; I really loved Tracker and I loved Mossi, and the prose was very good!
Now let's get into everything I hated.
This book is so misogynistic, like it's actually crazy. Women are only mothers, or bitches, or victims of rape, and the way men talk about them is REVOLTING, like truly amazingly horrible, that's wild. The main women in the story exist only to do great evil and die, or be raped and die, it's miserable. Sologon and Bunshi and the king's sister (I forgot her name already, damn) go on rants about how horrible men are that feel like they were ripped from a Reddit board, like totally flat and emotionless, it's so weird.
And speaking of sexual assault, I would literally never recommend this book to another survivor as incest, rape and pedophilia are tossed around like it's nothing. I could hardly appreciate the fascinating story for all of the rape that took place in this book, it was truly atrocious. The main character is raped, his love interest is raped and yet there is no discussion of trauma, just a shrug and a weird justification of the violence from one of the female characters which is???
AND ANOTHER THING, this book is truly so depressing, and like, I respect that happy endings aren't always good endings, but my God, it almost felt like living through a Hay's Code era movie where gayness HAD to be punished with the goriest consequences. I'm nervous about what Mr. James has planned next because this was some honestly bleak reading, the few bright moments immediately dampened by some new and horrible thing.
And it sucks! It sucks that rape was everywhere, it sucks that this book made me so angry and sick, it sucks that I know this book could've been so much better than this lightless, hopeless gorefest! It sucks because I honestly loved Tracker, like so much of him is precious to me and I wanted more of the book to be spent on his time with Mossi and his children, or even healing from his various traumas. Instead we got This, and it's so disappointing! Ugh!
.
.
.
.
I... I literally hate writing long reviews because they feel like book reports, but I have a lot to say. I'll start with the positive; I really loved Tracker and I loved Mossi, and the prose was very good!
Now let's get into everything I hated.
This book is so misogynistic, like it's actually crazy. Women are only mothers, or bitches, or victims of rape, and the way men talk about them is REVOLTING, like truly amazingly horrible, that's wild. The main women in the story exist only to do great evil and die, or be raped and die, it's miserable. Sologon and Bunshi and the king's sister (I forgot her name already, damn) go on rants about how horrible men are that feel like they were ripped from a Reddit board, like totally flat and emotionless, it's so weird.
And speaking of sexual assault, I would literally never recommend this book to another survivor as incest, rape and pedophilia are tossed around like it's nothing. I could hardly appreciate the fascinating story for all of the rape that took place in this book, it was truly atrocious. The main character is raped, his love interest is raped and yet there is no discussion of trauma, just a shrug and a weird justification of the violence from one of the female characters which is???
AND ANOTHER THING, this book is truly so depressing, and like, I respect that happy endings aren't always good endings, but my God, it almost felt like living through a Hay's Code era movie where gayness HAD to be punished with the goriest consequences. I'm nervous about what Mr. James has planned next because this was some honestly bleak reading, the few bright moments immediately dampened by some new and horrible thing.
And it sucks! It sucks that rape was everywhere, it sucks that this book made me so angry and sick, it sucks that I know this book could've been so much better than this lightless, hopeless gorefest! It sucks because I honestly loved Tracker, like so much of him is precious to me and I wanted more of the book to be spent on his time with Mossi and his children, or even healing from his various traumas. Instead we got This, and it's so disappointing! Ugh!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Pedophilia, and Rape