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percys_panda_pillow_pet's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Shelley Parker-Chan has really knocked it out of the park this time. For anyone who was worried the sequel to She Who Became the Sun wouldn't be as good, or even those who were maybe not as impressed with the first book, I think you will be amazed at He Who Drowned the World.
The book has a bit of a slow start admittedly. It's tough to follow up the ending of the first book and the crazy choices the characters made. But give it a little bit of time to get reinvested in the world and characters and you'll find that Parker-Chan did an incredible job of building off of where she left off. There are more POVs than before, but I didn't mind the inclusions at all. In fact, this book made me truly appreciate Ouyang's character and his downward spiral. All of the different narrators gave such depth to the main themes of loss, ambition, and what it means to be yourself.
We see all these become more and more hyperfocused on their "fates", losing themselves and who they used to be in the process. In some ways, their fervent pursuit of the future is just an extension of their fixation on the past that they can't let go. I was fascinated and horrified with the choices these characters made, that simultaneously a character can be cruel and yet undeserving of the cruelty thrust upon them. Madam Zhang, General Ouyang, Wang Baoxiang, and even our original main character, Zhu Yuanzhang all suffer from the same oppressive forces in society and fight back in their own ways, but more often than not end up working with the society that hurt them as they try to defy it.
If you enjoy character deconstructions, character's descent into self-destruction, and examining the way that a society can hurt different people in the same way, for not belonging or acting within the expectations thrust upon them, this is the book for you.
I also just have to add that my favorite parts were when Ouyang and Zhu interacted, they ended up accidentally being a hilarious comedy duo that really lightened the darker mood of the book haha.
The book has a bit of a slow start admittedly. It's tough to follow up the ending of the first book and the crazy choices the characters made. But give it a little bit of time to get reinvested in the world and characters and you'll find that Parker-Chan did an incredible job of building off of where she left off. There are more POVs than before, but I didn't mind the inclusions at all. In fact, this book made me truly appreciate Ouyang's character and his downward spiral. All of the different narrators gave such depth to the main themes of loss, ambition, and what it means to be yourself.
We see all these become more and more hyperfocused on their "fates", losing themselves and who they used to be in the process. In some ways, their fervent pursuit of the future is just an extension of their fixation on the past that they can't let go. I was fascinated and horrified with the choices these characters made, that simultaneously a character can be cruel and yet undeserving of the cruelty thrust upon them. Madam Zhang, General Ouyang, Wang Baoxiang, and even our original main character, Zhu Yuanzhang all suffer from the same oppressive forces in society and fight back in their own ways, but more often than not end up working with the society that hurt them as they try to defy it.
If you enjoy character deconstructions, character's descent into self-destruction, and examining the way that a society can hurt different people in the same way, for not belonging or acting within the expectations thrust upon them, this is the book for you.
I also just have to add that my favorite parts were when Ouyang and Zhu interacted, they ended up accidentally being a hilarious comedy duo that really lightened the darker mood of the book haha.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and War
Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Slavery, Torture, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Outing
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Child death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Medical content, Death of parent, and Dysphoria
Minor: Incest, Miscarriage, Suicide, Vomit, and Abortion
alexalala's review against another edition
4.0
The sequel to one of my favorite books, She Who Became the Sun, He Who Drowned the World continues the story of Zhu Yuanzhang, the Radiant King, who has come from obscurity to become one of the most powerful leaders in an alternate China. She'll go up against Madam Zhang, a queen who has an army that could beat her, and Baoxiang, the scholar son of the late Prince of Henan who has maneuvered his way into the capital. Zhu will have to team up with Ouyang, the disgraced eunuch general who sliced off her arm. Together, they may be able to take the throne and get Ouyang's revenge against the Great Khan.
The good: As before, the writing by Shelley Chan in this book is exquisite. Her imagery and poetic language was both haunting and easy to parse. They masterfully wove the 3-5 narratives together in a way that made sense and built upon our knowledge of the world. The characters were incredibly complicated and diverse, and I was excited to see most of the voices. The author made sure to pull at our heartstrings with heartbreaking deaths, sacrifices, and debauchery which still hurts me after reading it. I loved the complicated relationships as well, between Zhu and Ouyang, Zhu and Ma, Baoxiang with his dead family, and Madam Zhang with her lovers and her own body.
The meh: I felt this book lost some of the charm of the first book, which was mainly communicated through its humor. Though I recognize this was a book primarily about suffering, I felt it didn't quite match the tone of the first book. This may be good for some people but I missed the banter from the first book. I also had a problem with the climax being the very end of the story. I very much wanted to see a falling action and the consequences of some of the decisions made by Zhu and other characters.I also felt like Baoxiang and Ouyang gave in to Zhu's commands too easily in the last few pages. It's for this reason that I'm giving the book 4 stars instead of 5, as I was a bit disappointed in the ending.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and read it very quickly. I can't remember the last time a complicated fantasy series like this drew me in so quickly and forced me to read so fast.
You will like this series if you like: complicated relationships with others and self, ambitious people, political intrigue, war, suffering, consequences, and hard questions.
The good: As before, the writing by Shelley Chan in this book is exquisite. Her imagery and poetic language was both haunting and easy to parse. They masterfully wove the 3-5 narratives together in a way that made sense and built upon our knowledge of the world. The characters were incredibly complicated and diverse, and I was excited to see most of the voices. The author made sure to pull at our heartstrings with heartbreaking deaths, sacrifices, and debauchery which still hurts me after reading it. I loved the complicated relationships as well, between Zhu and Ouyang, Zhu and Ma, Baoxiang with his dead family, and Madam Zhang with her lovers and her own body.
The meh: I felt this book lost some of the charm of the first book, which was mainly communicated through its humor. Though I recognize this was a book primarily about suffering, I felt it didn't quite match the tone of the first book. This may be good for some people but I missed the banter from the first book. I also had a problem with the climax being the very end of the story. I very much wanted to see a falling action and the consequences of some of the decisions made by Zhu and other characters.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and read it very quickly. I can't remember the last time a complicated fantasy series like this drew me in so quickly and forced me to read so fast.
You will like this series if you like: complicated relationships with others and self, ambitious people, political intrigue, war, suffering, consequences, and hard questions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail