Reviews with content warning for Pandemic/Epidemic - Severance

Reviews tagging 'Pandemic/Epidemic'

Severance by Ling Ma

71 reviews

bmpicc's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective 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

4.0

Still thinking about this one. About Bob. About Candace at the end... I didn't know I would find Bible publishing to be interesting. If you like zombies and chaos this slower walk through what could happen after the fever might not be your (post) apocalypse novel. It WAS apparently my speed!

I think this can be read simply as is OR you could dig deep and find some metaphors/connections between the before and after. But again, I'm still thinking about it all.

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caprivoyant's review against another edition

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Plot- or character-driven? Character

I'll be feeling the ripples of this book in my heart for a long time, I think. It feels almost inseparable now from the real world's dystopian-like policies around a pandemic/epidemic. Candace felt real. What she was navigating felt real. And her story, although arguably a very lonely one, made me feel more connected to myself and helped me process a sadness about the world in a way that only a work of fiction can facilitate.

Was it perfect? Probably not. But it was everything I needed it to be and more. ❤️‍🩹

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sproutedpages's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.0

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saccharinewoe's review

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adventurous dark reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

even though i don't live in new york, the commentary on mindless consumerism in a late-stage capitalistic society that was touched on in this was painfully relatable for the city that i *do* live in. the concept of the mundanity of life and routine that we all eventually settle into turning us into zombies isn't new at all but i love how it was approached in this book. a fever easily spread, an illness anyone is susceptible to. touches on a couple more themes along with this one, like the complicated identity battle for diaspora kids and how cultism/autocratic leadership is bred in the face of a literal world-changing event. death, the transcience of memory and how that feeds into nostalgia even (which was masterfully weaved between the presentation of past and present). breezed through this one, i really liked ling ma's writing style; it was super easy to get sucked in and keep reading. i seriouslllyyyy enjoyed this so much, it might be one of my favourite books ever now!

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claire_lamb's review

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challenging dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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aklovekorn's review against another edition

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reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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darthbiblia's review

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dark funny tense 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

5.0

Whoa. This book came out years before COVID, but the descriptions of the early stages were so uncanny. The dry humor and office politics, concerns about foreign labor and gender issues. I loved the story of her immigrant parents assimilating in the United States, then bringing her as a small child. This was a beautiful story, and I was sad that it ended. I look forward to more from this author.

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