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parenthesis_enjoyer's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Medical trauma, and Alcohol
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I can see how this wouldn't be the book for everyone. If you wanted to be reductive, the plot is an old woman recounting long-ago events to a cleric and their talking bird. But I kept finding myself getting lulled into the word of the story, the glittering court and the crafty Empress. I understand why this series has gotten so much attention and I'm definitely in it for the long haul.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Trafficking, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Suicide, Grief, and Pregnancy
Minor: Infertility, Blood, Medical content, and War
Passing mention to forced sterilization.danteeeh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Death and Grief
trizk'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
4.25
Listened to this on audiobook while annotating on my Kindle off and on and the writing blew me away. It's so poetic and beautiful. The way the story is told reminded me of a studio Ghibli film, meaning if you want a fast story WITH action, it will not be here. The author takes their time to tell this story, and it was hard for my neurodivergent ass, but it was well worth it.
The audiobook narrator, Cindy Kay, did a very good job of bringing this story to life. Their voice was very soothing and suited the story. It truly captured the feeling of being told a story by someone;
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Suicide, Pregnancy, and War
__codex's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Animal death, Death, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, and Classism
wardenred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Do you understand?
Such a beautifully crafted story! Reading it was like solving an intricate puzzle. There are all these layers here: the story of the exiled empress who conquered the empire through a long, clever game; her former servant girl, now an old woman, telling that story; and the cleric recording it. For such a short book, there are so many characters and narrative threads—and then there are also the gaps between those threads. The details Rabbit isn’t sharing. The nuance Chih isn’t fully grasping. The things In-yo kept to herself. The gaps are just as important as the threads for the experience, I found.
In a way, I feel like this book is a tribute to storytelling and history. It is very much about facts, what happened and why and to what end, and while multiple characters have their moments to subtly shine, for the most part characters feel like vehicles for the plot/history to unfold. They hurt, they grieve, they love, they yearn, and they still feel like game pieces on the board, or parts of a puzzle slotting together, or maybe like real life people from ages ago on a history book page: you know they were as human as you, but in the succinct account of world-shaping events, they feel more like forces of nature or links in a chain.
I’m not sure how much sense I’m making here trying to put these impressions into words, tbh, but this was truly an interesting experience. I usually gravitate toward character-driven fiction that delves deep into everyone’s heads. Here, I was getting to know the characters through events and causal connections, interspersed with short poignant moments that revealed some feelings and motivations more clearly at moments, only to leave many parts of the bigger picture up to interpretation.
I was also deeply moved by the lyrical writing style that perfectly conjured the impressions of duty, loyalty, and coldly calculated rage. I loved Almost Brilliant, Chih’s bird companion. And I really want to know more about the Singing Hills. I really hope the next novellas in this series are just as good and can’t wait to get to them, though I’ll definitely need some palate cleansers between these books to let all the impressions settle.
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Confinement, Death, and Pregnancy
ash_tree57's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Death, Violence, Pregnancy, and War
arkwen452's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I find that in a way the book leaves some aspects of character interpretation up to the reader but at the same time delicately explains the emotional state of those in Rabbit's stories. It was a bittersweet experience reading this book.
Moderate: Death
amandaisok's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Minor: Death
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Grief, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Infertility, Suicide, and Murder