Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, by N.K. Jemisin

11 reviews

carolined314's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Grief, and Torture

Moderate: Death of parent, Stalking, Colonisation, Death, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Incest, Violence, Confinement, and Bullying

Minor: Genocide, Cannibalism, Pedophilia, and Child abuse

mossgoblins's review against another edition

emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Although N.K. Jemison’s Broken Earth trilogy is one of my all time favorite series, I didn’t resonate strongly with this book. It is one of her first books, so perhaps it is simply that she has grown so much as an author since, but I found the characters less complex in The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, the plot confusing, and the setting merely satisfactory. I can’t recommend this book as more than just a mildly entertaining read, but I do highly recommend Jemison’s later works- in particular: The Fifth Season. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, War, Blood, Emotional abuse, Incest, Torture, Confinement, Body horror, Death, Violence, Injury/injury detail, Gore, Grief, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Slavery

Minor: Pedophilia and Rape

laguerrelewis's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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

Is anyone surprised? This book has all the hallmarks of why we love Jemisin: a rich, exciting, creative world, compelling characters, and a narrative voice unlike any other I’ve read period, much less in this genre. I have the whole trilogy, and I’m excited to see where the story builds from here. It’s great to see where Jemisin began to carve out her place in the line of great novelists, and she popped out almost fully polished and ready to go.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Religious bigotry, Torture, Grief, Slavery, Body horror, Gore, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Incest, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape

queenie_ofthe_void's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective 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

4.5

NKJ is a continuous safe go-to for great stories. Of course I loved Nahadoth, but Yeine and Sieh were amazing protagonists. Even the villains were great, although I would've liked it just a touch more if Yeine had had at least one positive female relationship in the story. With that said, the men (and/or male presenting) on her side were diverse in personalities and enjoyable. Can't wait to read more!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Violence, Sexual content, Blood, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Murder, Injury/injury detail, and Grief

Minor: War, Vomit, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Slavery, Sexual violence, and Pedophilia

ruthlessreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• 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

5.0

This was one of the best fantasy novels I've read in a long time. It is spectacularly written with characters that you love & grow close to quickly and some that you hate. It has a plot that would satisfy even the most discerning of readers and I can't wait to read the next book & find out where the story is going next. 

When Yeine Darr's mother dies, she is called to the throne of the king & given the shock of a lifetime: she is the granddaughter of the king & he has named her heiress, throwing her into the middle of a vicious & brutal competition for the throne of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. However, as her relationship with the Enefadah (gods who were enslaved by the ruling class after losing a cosmic war against their sibling) deepens & begins to change, Yeine learns more secrets about the throne than she ever could have imagined. When she finally learns something about herself that shakes her to her core, she must decide how to use this new discovery to her advantage before time runs out & the next heir to the throne is chosen!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Confinement, Death of parent, Slavery, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Classism, Alcohol, Violence, and Sexual content

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, War, Abandonment, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Grief, Bullying, and Drug use

nytephoenyx's review against another edition

dark tense 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

5.0

I really, really enjoy N.K. Jemisin’s writing. Her worlds are broken and explosive, and her characters so multifaceted. I enjoyed the Broken Earth trilogy, but I liked The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms even more.

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is a book about how power corrupts, the danger of jealousy, the fallacies of gods, and the prejudice of humanity. It’s a story about vengeance on many different tiers – personal, familial, and even immortal. I was sucked in by the book, even if it was a bit of a slow read. It was worth it the patience for the depth and darkness it provided.

Jemisin has a way of creating characters that are more flaw than virtue, but you still adore. Yeine is angry, selfish, driven, strong, arrogant, reckless, and utterly interesting. Her quest for answers is the minor plot of the book – she wants to know why her mother left Sky and who killed her. Sieh and Nahadoh rank in my list of favorite characters of all time – there are so many different layers to each of them. So much pain, nostalgia, joy, charm, vulnerability, desire, hope, anger, despair… I could go on. These characters were two sides of a coin for me. Sieh’s childish hope counterbalanced Nahadoh’s desperate need perfectly. They’re also compelling, interesting characters. Too big for their bodies, in a very literal way. Loved them.

I believe the marketing of this book is a little misleading about its content since it’s far more complex than it appears. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is marketed as a YA epic fantasy. I would strongly disagree that it’s a YA book – it’s somewhere in the New Adult range more accurately. Yeine is young – nineteen, I believe – but she is older emotionally than her physical age because of her upbringing. There are definitely adult themes in this book and while I’m sure many individuals in the YA audience could handle it, I really think this is not a YA book. In terms of fantasy… well, yes, okay. It’s a fantasy world. Beyond the magic and theology, it’s a mystery story with the feel of urban fantasy. The world building is akin to epic fantasy, but that’s it. And it’s still really good – don’t let this deter you! It’s just not quite as I assumed before reading.

The mystery plot was a bit uncomplicated. There was a last minute twist at the end of the book I wasn’t expecting, but otherwise, I was so invested in the theological aspects of the story that I generally found Yeine’s insistence of digging up her mother’s past to be a distraction from more interesting things. The real story here, for me, was the tale of the three original gods and I loved it. I’m so glad this is a trilogy because I want more of this story. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms reads like a standalone book – there’s a satisfying enough end that you can stop if you want, but why on earth would you want to stop?

This is a book I am definitely going to buy in hardcopy. I could easily get lost in this dark and convoluted world. I will be reading on in the trilogy, and likely, I will reread The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms again someday in the future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Classism, Death, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Slavery, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: War and Grief

Minor: Body shaming, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, and Rape

seanml's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The Gods are HOT and everyone is down BAD for them, the other Gods especially. 7/10.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Violence

Minor: Blood, Confinement, Genocide, Racism, and War

elenamarmiroli's review

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Questo libro mi ha confuso parecchio, soprattutto all'inizio, ma la cosa è chiaramente intenzionale vista la struttura e la narrazione dell'opera. Il problema è che ci mette parecchio a diventare più chiaro ciò che sta avvenendo, cosa che personalmente può dare fastidio o meno.

Per quanto riguarda me, ciò a inficiato sul mio apprezzamento generale, in quanto ho avuto bisogno di parecchio tempo per appassionarmi e immergermi nella storia.

Ciò che ha risollevato le sorte del libro è il finale, che mi ha positivamente colpita e la relazione tra la protagonista e Nahadoth.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Slavery, and Confinement

achingallover's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gore, Incest, Murder, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Racism, and Racial slurs

fionac326's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Incest, Murder, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, and Vomit