A review by lucifer_morningstar13
Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi

adventurous dark hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I enjoyed this book, and I am glad I chose to listen to the audiobook for this one, as the cast was just as amazing as the cast that read Pet. I will say though, that I did not find the main character to be all that likeable, mostly because the decisions she made and a lot of the feelings she felt throughout the book were just foreign to me.
She felt so much guilt after she called Vengeance through and he declared that he and the other Angels/Hunters were there to seek out the monsters of her town and execute them, I would have been all for that, but even if I hadn't been so sure about it, it's not like I would have thought it was my fault since there was no way I could have known about the existence of these creatures and their plans for the monsters of the town. Bitter just took everything to heart and was so so empathetic in a way that I simply could not relate to. She went to such lengths to stop the killings and, sure, in the end it only took a few of the targeted deaths to bring peace and equal wealth distribution to Lucille, but I felt that at the very least, the greatest monster of Lucille needed to be killed, and I don't know why she couldn't see that.
 
I enjoyed the themes of this book, and it was nice to see so many young people coming together to fight for a better present and future for themselves, though frustrating to see that the elderly in the book had been fighting the same fight when they were the same ages. It echoes reality in America for poor and working-class people of color perfectly.
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