Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - Bitter

Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi

23 reviews

gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious 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

I've only read two books by Akwake Emezi (but I think this author could be a favourite), being their middlegrade novella, Pet, & their adult literary romance, You Made A Fool Of Death With Your Beauty (two incredibly different titles, target audiences, etc).

Bitter brings us back to Pet's world of monster filled Lucille... but is it the monsters you're expecting, or a much more sinister kind? The type with a friendly face, & unexpected urges? This story throws us into Bitter's life. Sick & tired of seeing protests & bodies bruised & battered outside the safety of her school, she throws herself into her art... slowly finding hope again, & her own role to play in the fight against the monsters of Lucille.

I really enjoyed this. I love seeing more of this world, & how it affects a different set of characters.

Bitter comes across very standoffish but I enjoyed seeing that hard exterior slowly chip away.

I felt so comforted by Miss Bilphena's care of checking everyone had substantial food I'm their stomachs & the simple question of "you eat meat" made me kind of emotional. I think it was that kindness to care for everyone's dietary needs were cared for, regardless of the chaos happening out in Lucille.

It was great to see more of these hunters & more back story to the magic of the blood/paint. That's something I was really curious about whilst reading Pet & Bitter has answered so many questions.

I loved the message that everyone has a role to play in revolution and you don't have to be in the front line to be doing worth while work. It doesn't make you weak or a coward, everyone has their place and is valued in their effort of changing the world for the better.

This was a powerful & impactful novel.

Content Warnings

lindseyhall44's review against another edition

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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

4.0

I picked up Bitter because it’s predecessor Pet, was one of my favorite books of the year. While nothing can compare to the genius that was Pet, Bitter was still an amazing read!
Bitter follows its titular character as she navigates themes of art, social justice, and activism . Set against the backdrop of youth protest, Bitter decide must if leaving the safety of her boarding school, Eucalyptus, is the best way for her to create the change she desires.
The characters were definitely the strongest point of the novel, as Akwaeke did an amazing job creating flawed and complex narratives. Bitter’s character development was a master class itself, but the side characters also added an important outlook into the practice of youth activism, and the many different routes there are!
That being said, I do wish we had gotten a more developed look into Aloe and Bitter’s relationship, but that is just a personal preference, because I love them together!
Overall, I would 100% recommend reading Bitter, but maybe pick up Pet first:)

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haylzno's review

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-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

Looooove me some Bitter and Aloe ❤️❤️

As much as I loved Pet, I think I loved Bitter more!! (Both are 5 start books though).

I enjoyed getting more backstory about the Angels and learning more about Aloe and Bitter. I think a re-read of Pet is a must, with all this new info.

Content Warnings

overbooked207's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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

📖 Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi Book Review 📖

1st book of July 2022 and 15th book of the year:

This was such a powerful, fantastic, and relevant book and prequel to one of my all-time favorites, Pet. You don’t have to read Pet in order to understand this book, but I highly recommend doing so anyway because it's also such an amazing and important book. I loved that we got to go back in time to see the events talked about in Pet in this book and follow Bitter’s story this time, and it felt more mature and heavier than Pet. The writing and world-building are always phenomenal in Akwaeke Emezi’s books, and this time was no different. The themes/topics that the book brings up including revolution, healing, generational trauma, mental health, found family/coming together as a community to help each other, using art as activism, the cycle of violence, and more are all super important to talk about nowadays and always, the making it a book that I think absolutely everybody should pick up. The audiobook was also done beautifully, and it felt more mature and heavier than Pet, which was already dealing with very heavy subject matter. I highly recommend reading this and everything by Akwaeke Emezi, and I am absolutely in love with all of their book covers! TW for blood, death, self-harm/cutting, police brutality, racism, homophobia, war, hate crimes, dissociation, panic attacks, gun violence, gore, fire/fire injury, vomit, ableism, injuries/injury description, abuse, abandonment, mention of the death of a parent, mention of rape, medical content/trauma, eye mutilation, body horror, mental illness, child abuse, and grief📚🎨

Content Warnings