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A review by displacedcactus
Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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
This prequel to Pet provides more context about how the city of Lucille got rid of its monsters. Unfortunately, I felt like it just shone a light on the holes in the world building. Based on references to real-life people and events, it feels like Lucille is a city on Earth, probably in the US? But the city seems to exist in a void, with no reference to county, state, or federal organizations.
Bitter shows us the start of how Lucille got rid of its monsters. Pet shows us a Lucille that believes the monsters are gone. But what I really want is the story of how Lucille appears to operate as an autonomous city. What is going on in the rest of the world? Has this revolution rippled out into the rest of the country or the world? Is the rest of the world watching Lucille as a sort of case study?
Just like Pet, Bitter ends up being a story about justice, vengeance, crime, and punishment, about what monsters deserve and the fine line that we have to walk to protect the vulnerable among us while also trying to minimize the stains on our own conscience. But just like Pet, I felt like Bitter could have spent a bit more time sitting with these ideas rather than rushing the resolution.
I feel like you can probably read these two books in whichever order you want -- they each spoil certain elements of the other.
Bitter shows us the start of how Lucille got rid of its monsters. Pet shows us a Lucille that believes the monsters are gone. But what I really want is the story of how Lucille appears to operate as an autonomous city. What is going on in the rest of the world? Has this revolution rippled out into the rest of the country or the world? Is the rest of the world watching Lucille as a sort of case study?
Just like Pet, Bitter ends up being a story about justice, vengeance, crime, and punishment, about what monsters deserve and the fine line that we have to walk to protect the vulnerable among us while also trying to minimize the stains on our own conscience. But just like Pet, I felt like Bitter could have spent a bit more time sitting with these ideas rather than rushing the resolution.
I feel like you can probably read these two books in whichever order you want -- they each spoil certain elements of the other.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Cursing, and Drug use
Minor: Blood
The drug use in question is marijuana being smoked by 17ish year old characters. It's not really specified whether or not weed is legal in Lucille, but one would presume it still wouldn't be for minors.