Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

36 reviews

zombiezami's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Confinement, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Torture, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, Murder, Racism, Blood, Death, Gore, and Sexism

Moderate: Self harm, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Sexual harassment, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Cursing, Medical content, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Rape

Minor: Racial slurs and Religious bigotry

aleyajo's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring tense fast-paced

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

5.0

So enthralling! Excellent critique of the prison industrial complex. You cannot truly love if you have ownership over another. Masterful blend of the real with the almost-real, akin to the Handmaid’s Tale.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Violence, Blood, Confinement, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Mental illness, Police brutality, Self harm, Cursing, Death, Forced institutionalization, Lesbophobia, Murder, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Rape

reaperreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective 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: Racism, Suicide, Confinement, Violence, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, and Self harm

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Rape

joanna_banana's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

• 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

I’d give this 6 stars if I could! It’s a work of genius. To wrap abolitionist principles and facts about the prison industrial complex in a novel with powerful characters you grow to love is an incredible feat. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah paints gruesome scenes with his words that are just one step further down our current reality of extractive late stage capitalist economy and torture factories that are American prisons. The commercialization of death and the “influencer” status the Links have is not surprising but such a skewering of corporate America. The Board room scene! Ah. The contrasting relationships and chapters from different perspectives added so much. He challenges what you may think about incarcerated people. The violence made me squeamish but it’s a wake up call to realize the violence exerted on primarily BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ people every day by soldier-police and the prison system. This is a must read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Self harm, Racism, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Mental illness, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Gore, Suicide, Blood, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Torture, Grief, Confinement, and Violence

kmarkus15's review against another edition

challenging dark funny informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

Overall I like the concept of this book and the message it is trying to get across. Our criminal just system is horrific and it’s not a stretch to believe the billionaires in control would push for kind of system. 

I wasn’t fan of the execution. I found it hard to route for any of the characters as they are all relatively bad people. I’m not a fan of flitting from perspective to perspective so quickly. I also was hugely disappointed in the end. It’s easy to say from outside perspective what you would or wouldn’t do but personally I cannot imagine a world in which I would allow myself to do what Loretta does at the end. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Sexual assault and Rape

emily_koopmann's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

Moderate: Police brutality, Forced institutionalization, Classism, Sexual content, Ableism, Physical abuse, Blood, Racism, and Death of parent

beefgameplays's review

4.5

I was shocked to turn the page and realize that the book was over. But then again, we really didn’t need any more than that. The book already told us everything we needed to know. And that’s sad. This book is really just a lot of pain. Beautiful and terrible and undeserved pain. Staxx was right the whole time. It tells a hopeless story for the characters that still leaves the reader feeling hopeful somehow. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Sexual violence

mirandalikesbooks's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

The author of this book did such an incredible job weaving together facts about our current industrial prison system and details about the prison system of this universe. So much so that it definitely feels like real corporate Amerikkka could make the decision to move in this direction. 

This undeniable parallel to the real world that was interspersed with real laws and real instances of police brutality didn't detract from the fact that this was absolutely beautiful fiction. The characters were so rich. I was fully invested in Loretta & Hamara's relationship - their circumstances made me feel real emotions. And the stories of prisoners who were tortured or controlled to the extent that this gladiator fighting became their only option kept me riveted as well.

I was convinced at the beginning, because it's sometimes hard for me to sink into fiction that requires a ton of world building,  that this would land as a 4 for me. By the end I was smashing that 5 star button HARD. 

No notes. Everyone should read this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Torture, Slavery, Murder, Death, Grief, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Blood, Classism, and Confinement

taracloudclark's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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

Just Mercy and Hunger Games had a baby and Handmaid’s Tale and Unwind looked on at the christening. Beloved looks down from heaven in approval. 

What an action-packed, hard truth story! And a fantastic depiction of what might actually come about if current societal sins go unchecked. 

Narrators were incredible, giving even more humanness to these already hyper human characters, a rawness that is felt in the core. 

May God have mercy on our souls. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Suicide, Cancer, Police brutality, Sexual violence, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Lesbophobia, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Misogyny, Gore, Homophobia, Torture, Slavery, Violence, Murder, Racism, and Trafficking

blacksphinx's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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

This is the most perfect book I have ever read. It makes you want to go out there and tear apart the criminal justice system with your own bare hands.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Police brutality, Death, Grief, Racial slurs, Self harm, Violence, Gore, Murder, Confinement, Torture, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Transphobia, and Death of parent

Minor: Domestic abuse, Religious bigotry, Addiction, and Rape