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tbd24'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
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
splendidmusings's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, War, and Classism
luhreen'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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Slavery, Murder, Dysphoria, and War
Moderate: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Alcohol
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
jodean's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Racism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Outing, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Excrement and Vomit
chrisljm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This is a story about fate and how the main character seeks greatness with hers. Although an interesting premise, I didn’t really enjoy how the story was told. It’s like the meme about Zuko’s honor except it’s a billion times worse because all the main character talks about is her fate/greatness, it was incredibly excessive (fate was mentioned 145 times, greatness 50 times). I think the main character started off interesting, but something about the way we see her through other POVs made me so unattached to her, and I really didn’t care if she succeeded or failed.
I think maybe a large part of why I didn’t enjoy the book that much is because my beliefs/the way I see the world is so vastly different from the main characters, and so my disappointment might just be a me problem.
But also, the story moves so slowly it’s kind of hard to read in large chunks. A lot happens but it doesn’t feel like it, and I don’t want to say it’s boring, but it was hard not to zone out. There are also times where parts of a scene happen off screen? I don’t know if this is just a writing style or what, but it was confusing because instead of reading what happens, I have to infer for myself because the author likes to describe emotions first and events second.
Graphic: Body shaming, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Gore, Homophobia, Slavery, and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy
nicnevin'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: Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
ladyfie'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? Yes
3.5
also really didn't need that
Graphic: Violence, Medical trauma, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Racism, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Death of parent, Murder, and War
Minor: Animal death and Child death
momo916's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
As someone who knows absolutely nothing about Chinese history prior to 1900, the fantasy aspects of this book appealed more to me than the historical aspects, and for me the book was able to capture that fantastical atmosphere despite the fact that there isn't a whole lot of actual paranormalcy or superhuman abilities, just a lot of woowoo about fate and destiny. Kind of confusing since
All that being said will be on the lookout for the next book.
Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, and War
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Outing
orchidd'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
3.75
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, and War
Moderate: Child death, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
mossgoblins'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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Misogyny, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship