becksusername's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- 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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Violence, and Xenophobia
leanne_miron's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- 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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Violence and Child death
Minor: Suicide
dragongirl271's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I really enjoyed the unique way that gender is explored in this book: everyone is born genderless and confirms their gender later in life after exploring gender roles for themselves.
I liked the way that the twins relationship with each other through their childhood is explored, and how it conflicts with their mother and her wishes for them.
I feel like having this be a novella made this feel less complete, as there is not enough time to explore the world building that is always touched upon but not super explored beyond the surface level. Especially where the mother and politics are so intertwined in the plot, it feels like we are sometimes missing information about the world in which the twins live.
Overall, a fun read though!
I liked the way that the twins relationship with each other through their childhood is explored, and how it conflicts with their mother and her wishes for them.
I feel like having this be a novella made this feel less complete, as there is not enough time to explore the world building that is always touched upon but not super explored beyond the surface level. Especially where the mother and politics are so intertwined in the plot, it feels like we are sometimes missing information about the world in which the twins live.
Overall, a fun read though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Animal death
jadziaaudrey's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Blood, Classism, and Death
breakery's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- 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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Death
Minor: Child death
fareehareads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This story follows twin children named Mokoya and Akeha who live in the Grand Monastery and grew up in an environment that left both of them isolated and mainly dependent on one another. They are able to communicate through a system called slackcraft where they hear each other's thoughts and at times feel each other's pain. As kids, neither of them are gendered and are referred to by they/them pronouns until the kids themselves decide on a gender and have a confirmation ceremony. A point of contention arrises between the siblings when Akeha decides to be confirmed as a girl and it drives a rift between her and her twin. In the Tensorate universe, prophecies are not taken lightly so when Akeha develops the skill for seeing prophecies, the pair attempt to band together and change the outcome, to no avail. When a third comes into their lives, Thennjay, it makes an even bigger rift between them and Mokoya gets confirmed as a boy, the first son of the Protectorate (a monarch figure and their mother) in many years. The next half of the book follows Mokoya who flees from the monastic lifestyle and from his sister to find a path for himself and oppose a mother that is opressing a kingdom and the twins. I really enjoyed the twin dynamic in this book and the fluidity of gender and how it worked in this silkpunk universe. I can't wait to start on the rest of the series. Neon Yang has definitely become one of my favorite authors in fantasy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Gore and Murder
badbrhireads's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- 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? No
4.0
i actually really liked this! it was definitely a quick read and shorter story. some aspects couldve been more fleshed out but i still found myself looking forward to seeing what’s next. i thought the world building could have been more detailed but what we got was so so interesting
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death and Death
pupbeat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
Minor: Animal cruelty and Animal death
griffinthief's review
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury