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galexy_brain's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Death of parent, Grief, Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Colonisation, Gore, Physical abuse, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Torture, and War
Minor: Alcoholism, Blood, Abandonment, Infertility, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Excrement, Cancer, Child death, Classism, Pregnancy, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit
naomi_k'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
4.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Violence, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Blood, Child death, Death, Grief, and Torture
Moderate: Pregnancy, War, Classism, Colonisation, Medical content, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Vomit, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Sexism
kibbles15's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Child death, Violence, and Genocide
Moderate: War, Domestic abuse, Rape, Mental illness, Child abuse, and Vomit
Minor: Sexual content, Medical content, and Sexual violence
thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Sexism, War, Violence, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Genocide, Rape, Pregnancy, Vomit, Colonisation, and Death of parent
Minor: Medical content and Alcohol
azilisssss'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
4.75
Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Murder, Police brutality, Rape, Domestic abuse, Mass/school shootings, Gore, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, War, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, and Colonisation
Moderate: Vomit and Pregnancy
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The sections with historical, social and cultural informations were very interesting (at least for me) but I don't think that they were very well integrated into the narration and I can see how someone might find them a bit too much didactic and dry.
The historical events that are the basis for this story were brutal and certainly they cannot be brushed aside, but I still think that an author can approach the portraying of violence in a way that does not feel gratuitous (as it did for me in this case). I don't think that such a violence was well transposed on the page, at times it just felt like a list of atrocities, just for shock value.
In general, I just didn't get along much with the writing style, I found it eithera bit plain or a bit too much overdone, without much subtlety in terms of both narration and characterization.
Speaking of characters, I have to say that I struggled to connect with them, even when it came to the main character, Youngsook, there were very few moments when I felt really engrossed in her story and her feelings. I think that the characters' emotions were not so well portrayed, they were either too much melodramatic for my taste or kept hidden or just vaguely hinted at, so that I struggled as a reader to actually understand their depth and to be interested in the unfolding of the various relationships.
I wasn't so keen on the big final reveal, the events of the last chapters
just felt like too much for me, too over dramatic, too out of nowhere, just too much. The ending itself was also very abrupt.
I really liked the setting and the historical/cultural background but the story, the characters and the writing style quite dampened my enjoyment of the book.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, Gun violence, War, Colonisation, Police brutality, Torture, Death, Child death, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexism, and Grief
Moderate: Rape, Ableism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Excrement, Vomit, Blood, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Child abuse
Minor: Cancer, Body shaming, and Alcoholism
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, War, Blood, Child death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Religious bigotry, Torture, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Excrement, Vomit, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Cancer
zombiezami'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
4.0
Graphic: Torture, Gun violence, Violence, War, Death, Murder, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Child death, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Blood, Gore, Animal death, and Genocide
Moderate: Vomit, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexism, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual harassment, Excrement, Ableism, Alcoholism, and Medical content
Minor: Cancer, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Kidnapping, Drug use, and Infidelity
Starvationcorriejn's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, War, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Genocide, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Grief, Murder, Violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Ableism, Classism, Gaslighting, Sexual content, Vomit, Alcohol, Blood, Child abuse, Infertility, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, and Infidelity
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Cancer, Chronic illness, Medical content, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexism, and Suicidal thoughts
elly29'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
4.0
Junbu, Young-Sook's husband, seemed like a woman's fantasy of a husband.
I also didn't know about the Bukchon Massacre, or anything about Jeju Island and the struggle between insurgent and anti-communist government forces. There is a brutal scene that involves lots of things like rape, torture, murder, and child murder. (Also makes me sick at the thought that these things are happening in Ukraine.)
In the end, this is a story about diving, survival, and forgiveness. I love that the sea is a constant, a grandmother who will never leave you even when everything else has changed. I like the phrase, "To understand everything is to forgive." Using Young-Sook and her life as an example of what we should not do: may we be patient, may we ask questions, may we never assume, may we be perceptive.
Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: War, Gun violence, Police brutality, Rape, and Torture
Minor: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Vomit