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saphfics's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The world that Yangsze Choo has crafted was very colourful but I feel like at times, the story focused on less interesting things.
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Fatphobia and Misogyny
kappafrog's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
Cons: The plot was really meandering. There was a lot of time spent with Li Lan wandering around aimlessly, and while it showed off the cool worldbuilding, it left her motivations often muddled. She was a very weepy character which was all right but sometimes got a bit repitive. It was sometimes frustrating as a reader how big the disconnect was between what she was thinking and how she acted - she was often very passive in her conversations compared to what she was thinking. It wasn't unrealistic, but it did make her grate on me a bit. I was also never fully sold on Er Lang as a love interest. He was quite misogynistic and while this is true of most of the male characters in the book, which is appropriate to their place and time, it didn't make him seem that appealing.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Animal death, Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation
sarahb919's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Murder, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Self harm, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Domestic abuse, Infertility, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
book_gremlin42's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Drug use, and Death of parent
Moderate: Stalking
tahsintries's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Chronic illness, Confinement, Misogyny, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Addiction, Suicide, and Abortion
readandplaydk's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Drug use, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Suicide
lectora21's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug use, and Death of parent
Minor: Infertility, Abortion, and Murder
rivercat0338's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Drug abuse, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Classism
bookwyrmknits's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
The side characters of Amah and Old Wong were my favorites, though Li Lan herself was also enjoyable to read. I also enjoyed some of the other side characters a lot as well, though for all of them (except Amah and Old Wong) I had at least a few moments when I questioned their motives. All of the characters that we spent any length of time with were well developed and nuanced, often having echoes later in the story that I didn't anticipate.
One thing that I don't remember knowing before I started reading which would have been very helpful is the audience. I don't remember now if I had expected an adult or YA book, but this is definitely a YA book with an incredibly naïve protagonist getting herself into scrapes that an older, more experienced character would not. (So I guess it's good, from a story perspective, that she was so sheltered.)
Side note: while there is a love triangle of sorts in this book, it didn't bother me the way that trope usually does. I suppose that's because of the way it was handled, and because I could see the changes in Li Lan happening in what seemed like a very logical fashion.
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction and Suicide
lynssss's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Addiction
Moderate: Drug abuse, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
MC's father is pretty addicted for a lot of the novel to opium. He gets better for some of it though. One of the main pairings is a relationship between a early to mid 30s man and a 17 yo.