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joygarcialim's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Overall, it was very dry to read and at points I couldn’t distinguish when the author was being metaphorical or actually describing events in the plot. I’ll say that’s not necessarily the author’s fault, but there were definitely metaphors and descriptions that were just awful.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
madamenovelist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Minor: Alcohol
malisac16'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Torture, Medical content, and Grief
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment
bookishwondergoth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Fast-paced with a truly beautiful, gorgeously described world, Amélie Wen Zhao has crafted an enchanting and thrilling tale inspired by Chinese history and legends. Main characters Lan and Zen are a lot of fun, highly endearing, and I was utterly gripped from start to finish.
Will definitely be reading the next one.
Graphic: Death of parent and Colonisation
Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Self harm, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
One of the characters has a cleft palette, and is referred to with a slur that isn't really challenged, even though other people's prejudiced attitudes to the character's appearance are.bittennailbooks'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
Fast-paced, lyrical, heart pounding, Zhao delivers on one of the most anticipated YA fantasies of the year. I was lucky enough to get an early release of this beautiful hardcover and it shot up my TBR very quickly.
Thumbs up: The Qi magic system is outstanding and does not leave a reader behind when explaining how it works and it's limitations. The characters were delightfully flawed, more diverse than I was expecting, and felt fully formed. A fascinating take on colonization and the power struggles and intergenerational impacts of having history wiped because of it. The story had me completely hooked and was so full of rage and adventure, I finished it very quickly. This is my first read by Zhao but I will definitely be coming back for more.
Thumbs down: If I am being picky, the pacing could have used a little tweaking. It was a full lung-burning sprint for the first half of the book and came to a sudden halt halfway in.
Was it a nail biter? My hands are gone. This may be one of my favorite reads of this year and I cannot wait for the second installment. You'll catch me camped out launch day at the doors for sure.
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, and War
Threats of sexual violenceleedolee'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Medical content, and Cultural appropriation