Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby

297 reviews

nimeneth's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

Warning: do not read this book unless your stomach is iron-clad, or you're okay with skipping big chunks of pages. Seriously, pay attention to the tags.

I wanted to be kind to this book. I wanted to accept that this was going to be a difficult book club read that was gritty and uncomfortable and dark. The blurb was amazing, had a great hook, interesting title, the whole nine yards. Objectively the dialogue was a little flat and the characters felt a little wooden at the beginning, but it would get better, right? I would get through this even if I had to skim or skip scenes, it would be fine, right? Right??? I was optimistic. I was open-minded.

I did not like this book. I did not enjoy this book. The first 100ish pages were fine, mostly. I could accept the racism and homophobia as just part of what it's like in parts of Virginia. The middle is where it started to sour. I especially did not like the last 100 pages of it where it turned into full-on revenge porn. It's graphic, folks. There's no art, just blood. No redemption arc, just death. I think Cosby wanted the final scene to be profound or something, but by that point there's no tying it up into a near little package and calling it hunky-dory.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Racial slurs, Transphobia, Blood, Murder, Misogyny, Gun violence, Racism, Cursing, Death, Alcohol, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Deadnaming and Cancer

tastybooks916's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Violence, Homophobia, and Murder

bf9288's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious 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

5.0

I  was immersed in this book. It was the kind of book that kept me up all night and wake up early to finish the story. Two fathers work together to find out who killed their sons. I loved the character development and how each father had to come to terms with themselves. Ike had to look at who he was as a father, and so did Buddy Lee. It's heartbreaking that they had to lose their sons to realize how poorly they had treated them. It's so realistic though. We don't always get the chance to apologize and say sorry. We don't always get to mend the broken hearts that we've created. Ike and Bobbi Lee learned to be better than they were in the past. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: War, Gun violence, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Vomit, and Racism

evawhite's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Grief, and Violence

Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, Transphobia, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Alcohol

bl_6210's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Homophobia, Murder, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Deadnaming, Racism, Transphobia, Terminal illness, Death, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Gore, Hate crime, Cursing, and Abandonment

eusteph's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-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

I knew I would love this book less than 20 pages into it, and I wasn't wrong. 

This story is both heartbreaking and heartwarming in that it deals with the topics of racism, homophobia, and transphobia in a very down-to-earth way. Honestly, if someone told me this was based on real life events, I would believe it, that's how well crafted it was. 

Although the ending of the book was quite sad, it made sense and was the perfect way to wrap up this tale. I cannot wait to read more by the author. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, Hate crime, Racism, and Murder

trisarahtops_'s review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Violence

Moderate: Racism and Homophobia

_sunnysans's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, and Homophobia

Moderate: Alcoholism and Cancer

vanhalenreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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

5.0

"But time was a river made of quicksilver. It slipped through his grasp even as it enveloped him."

I swear it's like 5 star reads are the hardest to write reviews for. I never know exactly how to articulate my feelings on books that affect me so deeply. One thing I know for certain though: you need to read this book. S.A. Cosby writes grief and loss in such a way that you start to feel like you're grieving these fictional people, too. Beautiful prose, a beautiful story, and beautifully flawed individuals coming together to do something that should have been impossible. I love Ike and Bobby Lee so much. Frankly I'm a little sad it's over.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Grief, Blood, Homophobia, Death, Violence, Alcoholism, Gun violence, and Murder

thekrujue's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative sad tense slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, Cursing, Racial slurs, Violence, Homophobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Car accident, Alcoholism, Terminal illness, Racism, Grief, Alcohol, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Murder, and Death