This book could have been so much better

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I’ve read this entire book because the author is coming to a local event. I’m upset because it’s clear that they’re talented and could’ve delivered a great start to a Fantasy duology. Instead, they filled the book with racist and homophobic stereotypes and have included a part where a Black man is held in prison due to a knowingly false accusation by a white woman and is held there without being charged while being tortured. Oh, and said white woman is deemed “a hero” who is tasked with “saving the Black character from what he’s becoming.” What he had been up until this point is a fairly easy-going but ambitious TA at a local college. There was no reason for this to happen and the way other characters are handled is equally as upsetting. The author intended to write about police brutality and make a statement but all she really did was reinforce those issues with this character who thinks there’s a “right way” to interact with cops who have proven to be racist. Wouldn’t waste your time, especially since this is over 400 pages.