happysami's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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? No
5.0
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Violence
Minor: Sexual violence
kaitzeecee's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
3.0
Moderate: Violence and War
Minor: Sexual violence, Death, and Sexual assault
wyntonrude17's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
I don't usually make it through 450+ page books in under a month so this one kept the pages turning for me. Fantastic storytelling in this magical story. I was sorta a sucker for the love triangle that emerges, even though that could count as a cliche. Definitely would recommend this one!
Spoiler
I was a bit confused about why the emperor ultimately honored his side of the bargain after being outwitted by Xingyin. He seemed pretty pissed by the whole situation, and even seemed like he would kill his son with his rage, but then he seemed to flip once the military leader backed her up.Graphic: Sexual violence and War
meresand's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I wanted to love this book so bad but it just never quite went all the way for me. The writing style felt young, probably because of the first person narrative. Then the whole middle of the book was focused on a love triangle I had little interest in. Aside from her relationship with Liwei I felt the relationships between characters to be underdeveloped.
Plus there was a wholly unnecessary sexual assault attempt that came out of nowhere that I really didn't appreciate.
All this being said, I was so excited for the concepts of this book and the world the author began to build, but those points were burried in cliche love triangles and common tropes.
Plus there was a wholly unnecessary sexual assault attempt that came out of nowhere that I really didn't appreciate.
All this being said, I was so excited for the concepts of this book and the world the author began to build, but those points were burried in cliche love triangles and common tropes.
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
nrogers_1030's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
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? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Death, Violence, and Sexual violence
Minor: Death of parent
More...