Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - The Traitor Baru Cormorant

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

126 reviews

angievansprang's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book is truly a feat. An apropos read for this time in history as the story follows a rebel who insights uprisings as a favor to a larger colonial power, of which she is attempting to gut from within. A rich rumination on power, wealth, betrayal, and loyalty - this book will have you wondering what you would do in Baru’s shoes. What is the worth to you of the freedom of your own homeland? How far would you go to achieve this?

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thesunthesunthesunthesun's review

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I'll try to write a proper review later, when I've recovered. This book killed me, revived me, and then killed me again. Everything fits perfectly it just,, had to happen like that there was no escaping this.

My partner thrust this book in my hands yesterday with the request to read "just chapter one, and then let me know what you think :)". I finished it in 2 days (mostly because general life got in the way). I'm still reeling. This book is etched into my brain now.

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emath98's review

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Pages 1-368 4.75 stars
Pages 369-399 1 star

I AM SO ANGRY AT SETH DICKINSON. This book started out with a super interesting premise, a main character I was rooting for, political intrigue, lesbianism, and anti-colonial struggle. I couldn't put it down. I even enjoyed Seth's typical use of intense military/economic strategy (did NOT like in Exordia, DNFed that one). But I cannot in good faith support the ending of this book. I don't think I'll read the rest of the series.

2 massive complaints about the end of this book.
1: I am soooo tired of the kill your gays trope. It's not interesting or unique or compelling to the plot. Stop making your queer characters suffer for being queer!!!
2: The ending of the book, and what I've read about the other 2 books in the series so far, really buy in to the "I can change the system from the inside" idea that has never worked. (The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house, anyone?) I know part of the point is to have Baru as a morally dubious character, sacrificing her humanity in an attempt to save her people, but I don't buy it as an effective tactic. It feels so weird and icky that the "genius savant" who is apparently constantly able to trick and outsmart everyone, lands on sacrificing millions of innocent lives and the revolutionary hopes of other oppressed peoples for her own selfish gains as her brilliant tactic. I don't think her family would be proud of her. I am not proud of her. Maybe I should've seen it coming from the title...

In conclusion, could've been something really powerful and anti-colonial, but fell so flat to me in the end. Currently pretending that the final ~30 pages of the book do not exist.

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emilyplun's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

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

4.25

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keen's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
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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becky_hofer's review

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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mes0pelagic_fan's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative medium-paced

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

4.25

This book ripped my heart out and shredded it and set it on fire. I loved the first third of the book and was totally captivated, found that the middle section dragged a bit at times

(I struggled a bit to keep track of all the battle-moves the different parts of the rebellion were making)

but the last hour and a half literally had me riveted and praying that what I thought was going to happen wouldn't happen.

I have never felt so sad for a character who mercilessly drowns their lover for their own personal gain!!!!!! Even though she loved her! Like... I wanted u guys to be happy :(

I saw someone say that the twist of this book is

that there is no twist, that you think Baru will find a way to make things right with the rebellion and all the other people who pledged loyalty to her and then to Tain Hu, even after her betrayal, and it just never happens! She set things in motion in the beginning and she'll be damned if she doesn't play the part she wrote for herself. I have chills just thinking about it. I loved the machinery motif throughout the story, with the 'gears of Empire' and Baru herself being full of polished gears-- I think it really helped me see how once she was going there was nothing even she could do to stop herself.

I need a physical copy to scribble all over.

Also I didn't think I'd ever read a book where

scurvy was such a recurring issue. I'm going to eat an entire lime.

I don't think I'm gonna recover from this one tbh

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hexillith's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-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

4.5

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sersi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

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honeypunk's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

For the first 15% of the book I found it a difficult read to get through due to the authors writing style. I am not a fan of extremely long sentences strung together with commas and this appears to be something that the author used quite a lot in the beginning. In addition there were often times where I had to reread a sentence multiple times because there weren't commas in places I would expect. For example:
'Since a time before Baru could remember how to remember the market had filled the Iriad docks, the most noisy and joyous thing in the world.'
It made the experience much more difficult, and this combined with learning new fantasy terms and jargon spun me out.

However, I was really intrigued by the premise of the story, watching a character go through her country being colonised and her grapple for power. I began to enjoy the book, but halfway through this fell flat again.

I found my interest lost with the intracacies of war. The war felt like the protagonist, and Baru the side character who is watching it all come together. I am told about battles or political alliances falling apart , lists of Duke names I have no personality to match to, so I don't feel like I'm experiencing it.

Of course this is in part due to the fact Baru is hidden away, a tactical adviser as all these events happen and she hears about them via letters of via her meetings.

Unfortunately even when

the final war breaks out

I still found myself searching for more. I wanted to care about the characters, about Baru and those she surrounded herself with. This book just fell so flat for me, and the only reason I dragged through to the end was in hopes I would finally feel connected to the consequences of her actions, or the pain characters went through. But I didn't.

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