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peachani's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I only wish that the comeuppance deaths were more gory and protracted. It's what they deserved... Hmm. Maybe I relate to Moremi more than I initially thought.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Trafficking, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Murder, Sexual content, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Body horror, Car accident, and Death
Moderate: Trafficking, Cannibalism, Body shaming, Cursing, Drug use, Rape, Gaslighting, and Sexual content
Minor: Gun violence, Incest, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Deportation, Kidnapping, Vomit, Child death, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Cultural appropriation, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Ableism, Cancer, Confinement, Lesbophobia, Pregnancy, Self harm, and Transphobia
2treads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Tsamaase has something here with this futurisric, dystopic-touched novel. But what fatigued me with this one was the bloated plot tgat tackled too many societal themes without giving me the satisfactionof querying and exploring them fully to be affected. Throuh what feels like diary entries more than intercations and converstaions we are shown a society that has essentially imprisoned women in surveillance-heavy relationships or just by existing.
The onus of violece and criminal behaviour has solely been placed at their feet and they have to undergo invasive mind sweeps every day as well as being profiled after a certain period to ascertain their level of commiting a criminal act. Here we are looking at body autonomy, violence, intimate partner surveillance, patriarcyy, state surveillance and overreach; all in the name of protecting the women and by extension their families.
Along the way we drip into sexual abuse, trafficking, sexual exploitation, forced sex work through mind control, brief mention of ancestral beliefs, rape, reproductive shaming, economic and political corruption all wrapping their tentacles around this plot, this strangling my enjoyment.
The onus of violece and criminal behaviour has solely been placed at their feet and they have to undergo invasive mind sweeps every day as well as being profiled after a certain period to ascertain their level of commiting a criminal act. Here we are looking at body autonomy, violence, intimate partner surveillance, patriarcyy, state surveillance and overreach; all in the name of protecting the women and by extension their families.
Along the way we drip into sexual abuse, trafficking, sexual exploitation, forced sex work through mind control, brief mention of ancestral beliefs, rape, reproductive shaming, economic and political corruption all wrapping their tentacles around this plot, this strangling my enjoyment.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Gore, Rape, Grief, Misogyny, Lesbophobia, Trafficking, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Sexism, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault
shirecrow's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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? Yes
5.0
Women should not always have to die. Girls should not be born into death.
Womb City is a horror, ghost story exploring motherhood, memory, grief and what it means to be human. But what is most prominent me is that it's full of soul.
We follow our main character Nelah. She is complicated and angry and hurt but mostly she's yearning for love and connection. I adored her. She was twisted in a way that comes from immense pain. She was so human. Seeing her struggle with her body, her feelings and her need to be a mother was not only a strong plot point but also a beautiful and haunting reflection of women in real life.
The supporting characters were all fleshed out. Really, every single one of them felt like a complete character with flaws, background and personality.
I won't say too much, as this is still coming out in 2024, but what I can say is that you will learn to love and hate these characters. They're the backbone of this whole thing and they're strengthening the story and point that Tsamaase is wanting to portray.
Speaking of point; Womb City is a brilliant analysis of motherhood, the oppression of women and their bodily autonomy. It speaks on the usage of AI in something that should only be decided by nature: life and death. This aspect was very interesting to me considering AI is (currently and sadly) on the rise in so many different parts of society. Art and literature being it's most terrifying victims, what if humanity went beyond it and started using it in governmental issues. This book will give you a glimpse of that.
Gender, gender roles, sexuality and self expression is also explored. The later two not in such a big way as gender and the main plot mentioned above but still an undeniably important part of the story.
I enjoyed the Botswana backdrop and all the different African inclusions like slang and other locations.
Oh, btw this has some cyberpunk elements, body-hopping and it's more action and adrenaline packed than you'd expect. Totally not cool and awsome and an absolute brilliant bland of politics, love and action, noooope not at all (LIE DETECTED, IT'S ALL OF THESE THINGS AND IT'S SO DAMN GOOD).
I have to admit that at the beginning I was struggling to get into it. At around 90 pages I was wondering how the author was going to fill another 300. But my god, did it pick up. At around 110 pages I was so captivated I could not stop reading for the rest of the day. Tsamaase's writing style pulls you in by the neck and won't let go. The style definitely defines the story and keeps you going even when your body would rather go to sleep. Xe just has way of writing that makes you so absorbed in the story that you can't wait to figure out what's next.
And what's next? So many things get revealed that I was absolutely blindsided by. I gasped and looked around like I was in a movie theater. IT WAS THIS GOOD.
I adored this book. I adore Tsamaase and will definitely read everything else xe has written or decides to write in the future.
I am truly, utterly honored to have read this as an ARC and i'd be beyond delighted to have this in my bookshelf someday.
Do yourself a favor and pre-order this. Put it at the top of your 2024 tbr.
Thank you to Erewhon Books, Tlotlo Tsamaase and Netgalley for giving me a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, Infidelity, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug use, Death, Dysphoria, Car accident, Gore, Drug abuse, and Medical trauma
Minor: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Dementia, Miscarriage, and Misogyny
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