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lucky_stars's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Genocide, Toxic relationship, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Vomit and Dementia
elisaviihde'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
chocolate_pondue's review against another edition
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Genocide, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol
laurareads87's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, and Cannibalism
antixlibrary's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, and Vomit
flyawaytruelove'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? Yes
3.75
My favorite type of beast was the Joyous Beasts. I personally thought their lifecycle was the most unique (and maybe a bit horrifying) out of all of them. Heartsick Beasts are a close second.
I didn't feel like the narrator developed too drastically as the book. There were some points where her behavior felt a bit predictable, but she developed! Maybe as not as I hoped.
Overall, I think it's a good read! It's short and sweet so no harm in trying it.
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit and War
theatrix's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
feebles640'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
4.25
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Vomit
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Forced institutionalization
marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Suicide
econsidine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
However, they were totally correct. I loved reading this book. It's the story of a romance novel-writer/newspaper columnist/cryptozoologist consistently finding herself obsessed with the lives of various 'beasts' that live in her fictional city of Yong'an. From there, the book becomes much harder to describe — it's episodic, it's twisty, it's speculative and fantastic, it seems absurd at times and yet deeply real at others — so I don't have much else to say about it other than that I promise it's a fascinating read the entire time.
'Strange' is a fitting descriptor for this book. But I mean 'strange' in the most wonderful way I can picture. There isn't any book I can think of to compare it to. The result is something I want to recommend to everyone I know without having the right words to describe why I'm recommending it. But I promise — I promise — it's worth the read.
A special shout out to Jeremy Tiang's translation skills, as this could not have been an easy one. Having not read it in its original language, I'm obviously not the best judge. Maxwell Massa reviewed the translation a bit more critically here: https://artsfuse.org/232750/book-review-strange-beasts-of-china-an-exuberant-chinese-fantasy/ and notes some interesting Chinese folklore context that I definitely didn't know when I was reading. That being said, I still greatly enjoyed the book without that context, so whether or not you need it is up to you.
Graphic: Death and Suicide
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, Kidnapping, and Stalking
Minor: Cannibalism