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ohmage_resistance's reviews
61 reviews
Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
slow-paced
This book wasn't my favorite, but more in a "I thought it was bland way" than a "I thought it was bad" way. I'm not really into reading about political machinations and that was definitely the focus here. I guess I'm into more action-y takes on sci fi? Breq was also not a very interesting character to follow imo (she didn't have much of a personality in general), but honestly, I felt that way about most of the characters.
The worldbuilding around gender wasn't super interesting to me. There's multiple layers to it, but I'm familiar with all of the angles and I'd read different books that handled a lot of these aspects in ways I thought were better. It also bothered me that I think the takeaway that a lot of people got from the book (which is the takeaway the narrative supports)"wow, a cis man is being referred to with she/her pronouns, that's so weird" (which is not what is happening in world) instead of actually dealing with what a gender neutral society would look like in more detail. IDK, I suspect this will work a lot better for other people, but it didn't work for me.
The worldbuilding around gender wasn't super interesting to me. There's multiple layers to it, but I'm familiar with all of the angles and I'd read different books that handled a lot of these aspects in ways I thought were better. It also bothered me that I think the takeaway that a lot of people got from the book (which is the takeaway the narrative supports)"wow, a cis man is being referred to with she/her pronouns, that's so weird" (which is not what is happening in world) instead of actually dealing with what a gender neutral society would look like in more detail. IDK, I suspect this will work a lot better for other people, but it didn't work for me.
In Shadowed Dreams by S. Judith Bernstein
adventurous
fast-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
I enjoyed this one. The prose could have used a little bit more polishing at times and it's a bit meta about books/reading in a way that I'm not the biggest fan of, but otherwise it's pretty nice. I especially like the rep of chronic migraines, that's a form of disability we don't see a lot of representation for, and I thought it was well handled here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Gun violence, and Blood
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Ableism, Transphobia, Antisemitism, and Sexual harassment
Minor mentions are pretty minor. Chronic illness is representation of a major character who gets chronic migraines.
Promise of the Betrayer's Dagger by Jay Tallsquall
adventurous
reflective
Not bad. Could use for a little bit of polishing, and I had a little bit of trouble remembering the magic stuff in book 1, but it was nice to read a pretty solid classic fantasy book.
Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
adventurous
tense
This was generally a fun time. There was a bit too much focus on romance towards the end for my taste, but I did appreciate the demi rep. I liked seeing the MC's growth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Grief, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction and Death of parent
Eating disorder isn't quite the right term, shaming over eating habits is probably a better one.
Adult/minor relationship is because the MC is disguising herself as a princess (who is the same age as her) who has to marry an adult man (who is much older) (That man also attempted to sexually assualt her when she was a maid). Abuse is in terms of the MC being a servant who was abused by her employers (in her backstory).
The Weaver of the Middle Desert by Victoria Goddard
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
This was generally pretty enjoyable. I liked that this was more similar to/mirrored the first book in the series in a fun way.
The thing that excited me the most was that (light spoilers) It's pretty much confirmed now that Pali is (aro?) ace! Also her sisters seem kinda demisexual? But at any rate, I've gotten ace vibes from Pali before (from the books in the Return of the Red Company series) but it wasn't enough to confirm it for me, but this definitely is. So on one hand, I do have some critiques from an ace stereotype perspective, mostly to note how much Pali fits the ace female warrior/knight/paladin archetype (which is surprisingly common), on the other hand, I'm so excited for book three in the Lays of the Heart Fire series, because I really think her and Kip are going to have some interesting conversations, hopefully!
The thing that excited me the most was that (light spoilers)
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett
An abusive, drunk father beat his daughter after finding out she's pregnant without being married so badly that she miscarries, and later, he tries to hang himself out of guilt.
adventurous
emotional
Liked this one better than Wintersmith (did still have an edge of victim blaming as a holdover, but way less than Wintersmith). I'm also a bit tired of the way witches need to do stuff on their own/prove themselves. IDK if it's just because I'm older now, but I don't know if that's the inspiring feminist message Pratchett means it to be.
I did like the focus on doing the hard work to help other people who are easily forgotten or make tough decisions as what witchcraft really is. I also liked how the book focused on how social outsiders are hurt by witch hunts. Oh, I also thought the theme of having to deal with an old crush who's now into someone else was a pretty good theme to come up in a YA book.
I thought the ending would be a bit more exciting, but that's Terry Pratchett books for you.
I did like the focus on doing the hard work to help other people who are easily forgotten or make tough decisions as what witchcraft really is. I also liked how the book focused on how social outsiders are hurt by witch hunts. Oh, I also thought the theme of having to deal with an old crush who's now into someone else was a pretty good theme to come up in a YA book.
I thought the ending would be a bit more exciting, but that's Terry Pratchett books for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Body shaming, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity
Seven Devils by Elizabeth May, L.R. Lam
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
IDK, I felt like this book dragged a lot, I might have because I've been feeling a bit reading slump-y or what. I think if it was faster paced and used less flashbacks, that might have helped. It was also somewhat dark, but in a way that felt kinda edgy instead of serious.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Murder, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Sexual violence and Police brutality
Brainwashing should also be on here, I don't think it's on the list though. I put gaslighting as closest approximate?
Drug use was like, sci fi drugs against character's wishes
The Element of Fire by Martha Wells
adventurous
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
It took me a while to get into it, but I thought it was pretty fun. Much like several other early Martha Wells fantasy books, things escalate a lot quickly, but it's handled pretty well here.
Theage gap romance wan't my favorite (but at least both characters were adults. Also, apparently early Martha Wells uses this trope a lot ). The king is also implied to be gay in a way that felt pretty iffy to me.
The
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Torture, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Abandonment
Minor: Infidelity, Misogyny, and Death of parent
Homophobia was more supported by the narrative than I would have liekd.
Gun violence mostly with older guns.
Soulless by Gail Carriger
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
Ok, so this book was totally not my thing (I'm not a romance reader), but this is what happens when you're doing too many reading challenges.
I picked it up mostly because of the aforementioned reading challenge but partially because I read Carriger's Finishing School books as a teen. I thought the world building was a cool mix of steam punk/urban fantasy/Victorian England, and I knew these were set in the same world. I did still enjoy the worldbuilding and comedic tone, even if the romance was not my thing. I was probably one of the few people who was way more interested in the mystery than the romance, and I spent so much time mentally yelling at the characters to focus for like five seconds to figure out what was going on instead of being horny. Like, priorities people!
Also, being soulless is just being autistic, right? Like, the main character seemed really autistic coded and a lot of those traits were related to her being soulless. Which like, IDK about that. Also, there was an over the top/stereotypical gay best friend type character, which I think will be a ymmv type thing (at least he was a powerful vampire though?).
I picked it up mostly because of the aforementioned reading challenge but partially because I read Carriger's Finishing School books as a teen. I thought the world building was a cool mix of steam punk/urban fantasy/Victorian England, and I knew these were set in the same world. I did still enjoy the worldbuilding and comedic tone, even if the romance was not my thing. I was probably one of the few people who was way more interested in the mystery than the romance, and I spent so much time mentally yelling at the characters to focus for like five seconds to figure out what was going on instead of being horny. Like, priorities people!
Also, being soulless is just being autistic, right? Like, the main character seemed really autistic coded and a lot of those traits were related to her being soulless. Which like, IDK about that. Also, there was an over the top/stereotypical gay best friend type character, which I think will be a ymmv type thing (at least he was a powerful vampire though?).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Sexual content, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Misogyny, Racism, and Blood
Minor: Body horror, Bullying, Homophobia, Death of parent, and Classism
Apparently colorism isn't an option here, but there was racism/colorism towards the MC for being a darker skinned/having Italian heritage.
Hate crime was towards mythical creatures (ie werewolves, vampires, etc), not people.
Bullying was done by family members, but it was more like mildly mean statements about how they think the MC won't get married instead of anything super over the top.
The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
It was pretty decent. It was a bit too heavy on the political intrigue and romance for my tastes (but at least the romance was queer), but I can see why a lot of people would like it more than me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Classism
Drug abuse/addiction/psychosis is due to a fantasy/made up drug. Terminal illness also relates to fantasy illness. Religious bigotry is mostly people hurting others in the name of a religion, although it's also people from one religion looking down from people from another religion.