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wardenred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Thank Heavens for their misplaced belief that only the most holy should be in charge of the direction of Matilda’s journey, as that belief led to a good many of them dying.
Looking back, I knew from the get go that this was a book about slavery set in the confines of an inescapable generation ship. I shouldn’t be at all surprised at how dark this got. Still, somehow, I was completely unprepared for the sheer brutality of this setting, and yet barely able to put the book down. Dark as fuck, yes, but so compelling.
I think a big part of the impact was the approach the author took to describing the traumatic events faced by the characters. Only rarely do the events themselves get the spotlight. For the most part, the focus is either on the build up to them, or the aftermath, or on occasion, something is described in a few sparing, detailless sentences that focus on the utter mundanity of things that shouldn’t be happening to people at all. Altogether it creates a truly chilling effect.
What I found the most striking were all the human connections forming in this utter darkness, all these people figuring out ways to be kind to each other, to learn, to find the strength for another day. Aster, Theo, Giselle, Melusine are all going to live rent-free in my head for a while now, I’m sure. Especially Aster. I loved her so much. She’s clearly some type of neurodivergent and her way of interacting with the world was so interesting to me. I’ve seen reviews saying she didn’t form deep connections because of her unemotional disposition, but I disagree with it a lot—I feel like the connections were very much there, just processed and expressed differently than is common for neurotypical individuals.
Despite all the feelings and thoughts the book made me experience, I do have some half-complaints, mostly about the pacing: I felt like the story took a long while to start going anywhere, other than just being a snapshot of an oppressive, claustrophobic dystopia, but then the ending was rushed. It’s a bit like the book started as a character/situation study and then decided to develop a stronger plot a tad too late. That lack of balance didn’t take away from the powerful delivery of the themes, but it did made the narrative harder to process.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexism, Suicide, Slavery, Confinement, Racism, Violence, Death, Ableism, Misogyny, Homophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
hazelwood's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Abortion, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Death, Gun violence, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Self harm, Toxic friendship, Transphobia, Vomit, Ableism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Sexual violence, Slavery, Confinement, Excrement, Gore, Sexual assault, Cursing, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, and Violence
tatteredwings's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Physical abuse, Suicide, Vomit, Abortion, Violence, Torture, Sexual assault, Racism, Slavery, and Sexism
Moderate: Rape
madzie's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Religious bigotry, Classism, Mental illness, Homophobia, Confinement, Medical content, Slavery, Violence, Suicide, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Transphobia
astridrv's review
Graphic: Police brutality, Blood, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Lesbophobia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Blood, Gun violence, Abortion, Child death, Classism, Homophobia, Self harm, Death, Death of parent, Slavery, Toxic friendship, Grief, and Medical content
smith2ds's review
4.75
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Medical trauma, Rape, Abortion, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Grief, Medical content, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Violence, Sexual violence, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Blood, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Slavery, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Body horror
kwthor's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Sexual assault, Slavery, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Child death, Child abuse, Gun violence, Racism, Transphobia, Suicide, Mental illness, Hate crime, Domestic abuse, Classism, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Abortion, Cursing, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Pedophilia and Death of parent
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Torture, Gore, Slavery, Blood, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Confinement, Toxic friendship, Religious bigotry, Classism, Death, Child death, Racism, Medical content, and Police brutality
Moderate: Self harm, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Body shaming, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Transphobia, Gun violence, Suicide, Death of parent, Sexism, Abortion, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Dysphoria
Minor: Cancer, Pregnancy, Incest, Animal death, Vomit, Pedophilia, and Domestic abuse
mothwitchlibrary's review
3.25
Graphic: Death of parent, Abortion, Racism, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail, Death, Suicide, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Rape, Physical abuse, Medical content, Child death, Bullying, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Murder, Classism, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Confinement
liter_aly's review
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Mental illness, Violence, Child abuse, Murder, Suicide, and Racism
Moderate: Ableism, Racial slurs, Abortion, Incest, Confinement, Sexual violence, Dysphoria, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Torture, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, and Child death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Cancer, and Gun violence