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ember13's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Violence, Trafficking, and Abandonment
rainbopagn's review
- 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
4.75
SPOILERS in
3
2
1
I am more than a little pissed that Thurwar killed Staxxx. I had expected them to go out together, mortally wounding each other. I understand the meaning of the full circle moment but it still annoyed me.
Graphic: Blood, Police brutality, Violence, Body horror, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Homophobia, Suicide, Torture, Transphobia, Self harm, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Hate crime
Moderate: Abandonment, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Ableism, Rape, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Gun violence, and Infidelity
Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Medical trauma, and Cursing
ukponge'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, Racial slurs, Murder, Grief, Rape, Police brutality, Slavery, Domestic abuse, Transphobia, Suicide, Blood, Racism, Sexual harassment, Confinement, and Cursing
rkazoo'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Blood, Torture, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Suicide, Cursing, Murder, Confinement, Violence, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Racism, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Homophobia, Grief, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Racial slurs, and Sexual content
Minor: Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Rape, Slavery, Classism, Transphobia, Abandonment, and Fire/Fire injury
noodlebooknook'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
4.5
4 stars in some execution
4.5 stars to call it even
Let’s start with the good:
- the concept is very very good, I mean death games at this point I thought couldn’t be re-invented but this felt familiar yet fresh
- the main characters were so loved I almost cried multiple times it was so real and raw
- the author was very good at embodying all of the different POVS each one felt very separate and original
Some small criticisms:
- the POVs shifting without explicit chapter names for each character can be a little jarring sometimes I wasn’t sure if we were in the story of someone in the games or someone in the outside world
- some of the POV chapters were a little boring, like some chapters would have a rich back story while others I found myself not as invested in
- the changing sometimes between current and past events were not super clear and sometimes made a little confusion in the narrative, chapters as dates or names I think would have cleared me up
Overall I think this book is an amazing read and says so so so much about current prison systems and neo-slavery while in a fiction setting a lot of this book is very very real.
Graphic: Rape, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Ableism, Violence, Xenophobia, and Death
3littlewordz's review
- 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
Graphic: Murder, Self harm, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Police brutality, Mental illness, Racism, Suicide, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Medical trauma, Domestic abuse, Gore, Bullying, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, Classism, and Cursing
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Confinement, Self harm, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Medical content, Murder, Rape, Suicide, Mental illness, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Moderate: Classism, Hate crime, Transphobia, Car accident, Gun violence, Infidelity, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, and Ableism
kshertz's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Abandonment, Gore, Physical abuse, Body horror, Racism, Violence, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, and Death
jessthanthree'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, Suicide, Self harm, Gore, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Confinement, Mental illness, Racism, and Grief
Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Racial slurs, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Lesbophobia, Ableism, Religious bigotry, Transphobia, and Abandonment