Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

25 reviews

nemrac23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Blood and Vomit

spootilious's review against another edition

dark reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 Read: December 22, 2023
 Title: He Who Drowned the World 

Series: The Radiant Emperor #2 

Genre: Fantasy / Historical Fiction / LGBT 

Rating: 4 / 5
 Review: 

I occasionally come across a book that I really struggle rating and I was shocked to find that this is one of those books. 

I came into He Who Drowned the World with very low expectations. I didn’t care for She Who Became the Sun, for a number of reason listed in my previous review. 

However, almost everything that made me dislike She who Became the Sun didn’t make it into the sequel which I am very thankful for. To be honest, I was concerned with the massive amounts of recommendations I received in regard to this series and how many awards She Who Became the Sun has won. I was praying that He Who Drowned the World would make up for what (I felt) was an extremely lacking novel. I was not disappointed. 

Parker-Chan is a beautifully talented writer (Which I knew from book 1) and tends to lean towards the very dark and morose. In fact, a bit too dark for my usual taste which may be why I wanted to give this book (He Who Drowned the World) a 3.5 and not a 4. However, Parker-Chan’s ability to write horrific imagery in a such a simplistic and straightforward manner makes the imagery all the more effective. This includes a number of sexually explicit scene, which paints sex as nothing more than a tool, punishment, or means to an end which, while I once again did not like, I can respect. The reader’s response to a story is just as much of a plot device as the sentences on a page. I was appropriately repulsed. 

I will also say that I didn’t care much for the lack of morality in ALL the characters in the novel. It left me without a ship to sail and was, perhaps, the main issue that I still hold over from She Who Became the Sun. 

All that being said, the fast pace and action-packed plot had me devouring this book, and I could not in good faith rate it lower than 4 simply due to my distaste. (i.e. the 4 star rating is more my personal rating of 3.5 and the acknowledging that some of the reasons it’s a 3.5 is because of my own personal biases against the lack of moral characters, rape, and very dark tones). 

Overall, one of the best books I’ve read this year. I will definitely recommend to individuals who love reading Dark Fantasy and Historical Fiction. 

 

 

QUOTES: 

“The most dangerous person in a game is the one nobody knows is playing.” 

“Nobody would lift a finger to change the world for us. To make a place for us. What choice did we ever have, but to do it ourselves?” 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

sophiesmallhands's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Violence, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Child death, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Medical content, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Vomit and Death of parent

quinnyquinnquinn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Violence, Grief, Murder, and War

Moderate: Ableism, Child death, Homophobia, and Sexual content

Minor: Miscarriage and Vomit

stephanelli's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit

softanimal's review against another edition

dark hopeful sad tense

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Deadnaming, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, War, and Injury/Injury detail

beandream's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content, Vomit, Grief, and War

Minor: Body shaming, Death, Miscarriage, Abortion, and Dysphoria

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.

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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

saintmaud's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Gore, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Vomit and Pregnancy

aidareads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I've been thinking about writing a proper review for this one because it's been a while and this book, quite honestly, deserves the effort. Prepare for a long ass ranting, though.

First of all, the writing style was so, so captivating. I remember heavily highlighting the first book, but I still feel like Shelley Parker-San has improved a lot as an author, not only in their writing style, but also in their technique. Humor, for instance, worked better for me here than it did in the first book. Also, the way Parker-San intertwines characters and their fates is mesmerizing. The way they write characters in itself is so compelling and masterful. I love morally grey characters, and all the people involved in this story are so fleshed out; they feel so real. Ouyang specifically was very challenging for me because of his trauma and his issues and I bet it was hard to write as well, and I think the author did a fantastic job.
However, I must admit that triggering content is medium to heavy in this one, at least for me, especially because self-harm is so frequently brought up, explored, and graphically described. The same goes for sexual abuse/rape, among others. However, regardless of my subjective reaction to these topics, I still believe they were dealt with very well, and I don't think they were included for shock value at all - they are, in each and every scene they appear, relevant and highly meaningful for both the plot and the characters.
I also really, really loved the third part of the book, as well as how it ended. I personally value the overall experience when I read a book, but a great ending is definitely a huge part of the rating for me, and this one was fantastic.
Lastly, please check all the trigger warnings before reading this book. Take care, and sorry for the rant.

psa: i started this review with a 4.5 star rating, but after reading what i've just said, i don't think i have any reasons not to give this a solid 5 stars. i genuinely don't have anything negative to say about this. i'm not a fan of historical fiction myself, and i thoroughly enjoyed it (although the reiterative queerness definitely helps lmao) <3
 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Homophobia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Blood, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Vomit

Minor: Slavery