Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Witches: A Novel by Brenda Lozano

7 reviews

zw_r1's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

lanna2000's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

3/5 stars: woooweee this one took me all month to read haha! Chose this cuz it’s October but it wasn’t even giving spooky like that. It’s not even a long book but I was trying to absorb every story the narrators were describing. There is a lot of repetition in the narration especially Feliciana’s POV but I know that’s a writing choice and also it’s translated from Spanish to English (would love the read the original of I could read Spanish). I loved the way these two women told their stories and how even tho they didn’t grow up around each other, their experiences are quite similar. Sisterhood, family, misogyny, transphobia are some reoccurring themes from both women. The novel jumps straight into narration and the timeline skips around a lot so you just gotta read what they are saying at face value and then remember that contexts throughout the entire novel. I learned about Muxe’s and their experiences as well which align with how trans folks are seen in the US as well. Paloma is prob my fave character, she just seemed so full of light and love to share. I loved the tradition and medicine that are explained and how these two women who have experienced so much come together in ceremony to heal and face their past. Had more heavier themes including SA so I would keep that in mind before reading. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

jammons's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bookishcori's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

3.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

tink's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

"All women are born with a bit of bruja in them, for protection"

Challenging to read in places - for both content and writing style - but worth the read for the strong feminist themes. Feliciana is a strong role model.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

lizlikesfrogs's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

abookishtype's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced
  • 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

4.0

There are so many things we don’t know about ourselves. There are medicines we take for which we don’t know the mechanism of action. There are ailments that we don’t have good treatments for or, sometimes, any treatment at all. Perhaps the most mysterious illnesses of all are the ones that afflict our psyches or, as the protagonist of Brenda Lozano’s affecting novel, The Witches, would say: sickness in our soul or our “deep waters.” Feliciana, modeled in part on real-life curandera María Sabina Magdalena García, has been healing people’s sick souls for decades through veladas, ceremonies involving the use of psychoactive mushrooms. When journalist Zoe comes to interview Feliciana after the murder of Feliciana’s transgender mentor and friend, Paloma, we see how Feliciana works her magic on maladies that no one else would consider curable...

Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss, for review consideration. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings