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totsfions's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.25
Me reading any romance novel: that ending was too rushed.
Me reading any fantasy novel: that ending was too drawn out.
Any way, aside from the ending taking an eternity, this book was wonderful. I loved the magic systems and the deep attention to Chinese lore and myth that went in to developing this world. It also handles the complexity of power with a nuance not often seen in YA. This book reckons not only with the injustices of colonialism, but also the power structures that existed beforehand. It allows it's characters to process their grief, but also to find just retribution; to imagine not only what their lives would have been but also what they will be next.
Me reading any fantasy novel: that ending was too drawn out.
Any way, aside from the ending taking an eternity, this book was wonderful. I loved the magic systems and the deep attention to Chinese lore and myth that went in to developing this world. It also handles the complexity of power with a nuance not often seen in YA. This book reckons not only with the injustices of colonialism, but also the power structures that existed beforehand. It allows it's characters to process their grief, but also to find just retribution; to imagine not only what their lives would have been but also what they will be next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, and Colonisation
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Torture
gwenythepooh's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Check the trigger warnings!
This is a rich, winding story that had me enthralled. I couldn’t stop reading. Can’t wait for the next book.
This is a rich, winding story that had me enthralled. I couldn’t stop reading. Can’t wait for the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment
hailstorm3812's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I felt kind of meh about this. I like the world building a lot, especially the song magic. I also really like Lan and most of the side characters. but where it lost me is the romance. I don't know why she likes Zen, and we spend so much time on this. He abandoned a girl begging him to save her from being assaulted and only shows up again after she kills the guy herself. It's the opposite of a save the cat moment and he never recovers from it in my eyes. You can't go brooding demon boy and not give us a reason to like him.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Colonisation
bookishwondergoth's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- 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
What a wonderfully pleasant surprise. I must confess I only picked up a copy of this book because it came in my February Illumicrate and I took part in their Discord readalong. Ordinarily it’s not something I would have picked up as I tend to avoid YA like the plague these days.
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.
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.
Content Warnings
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.briely's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Racism, Torture, Death of parent, Murder, and Colonisation
nyah_ellexa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.25
I received the ARC for this book but only got around to reading it now.
I must say, I very much enjoyed the journey. The story is very compelling and the characters are complex yet lovable.
I love fantasies inspired by Asian folklore and history, so this book was right up my alley. It tells a great tale of China’s real experience dealing with the colonization and subsequent war crimes by the British. Many plotlines of this story were directly in context with real historical events, which I found extremely intriguing.
Lan, our protagonist, is someone I grew to really enjoy reading about. She’s spunky and independent yet not written as this stereotypical “not like other girls” type of female protagonist, which is very refreshing. She has some character flaws, but I believe that’s what makes me like her more. Just because she is a woman and our main character, doesn’t mean she has to be this perfect embodiment of good.
The author does a very good job at writing a compelling fantasy. My only gripe is that some of the dialogue come out very forced or too wordy. There’s a good chunk of exposition dumps within the dialogues or dialogues that seem to run for too long, almost as if the dialogues were translated. I do not fault the author too much for this though, as I’m aware that English was not her first language. The dialogue still flows pretty well in most parts and the times that is doesn’t still aren’t so bad that it hinders my reading experience.
Another small thing: I didn’t like the character of Dilaya. I found her rather unjustifiably rude to Lan and, especially since she’s the only other girl in the story of continued importance, I was a bit turned off by the fact she hated Lan so much. I found her strained relationship with Lan to be rather frustrating to read about and I wish the only two girls in the story didn’t hate each other so much. It just felt catty to me and I hope they both develop as character throughout the series and grow fond of each other.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and I look forward to continuing the series!
I must say, I very much enjoyed the journey. The story is very compelling and the characters are complex yet lovable.
I love fantasies inspired by Asian folklore and history, so this book was right up my alley. It tells a great tale of China’s real experience dealing with the colonization and subsequent war crimes by the British. Many plotlines of this story were directly in context with real historical events, which I found extremely intriguing.
Lan, our protagonist, is someone I grew to really enjoy reading about. She’s spunky and independent yet not written as this stereotypical “not like other girls” type of female protagonist, which is very refreshing. She has some character flaws, but I believe that’s what makes me like her more. Just because she is a woman and our main character, doesn’t mean she has to be this perfect embodiment of good.
The author does a very good job at writing a compelling fantasy. My only gripe is that some of the dialogue come out very forced or too wordy. There’s a good chunk of exposition dumps within the dialogues or dialogues that seem to run for too long, almost as if the dialogues were translated. I do not fault the author too much for this though, as I’m aware that English was not her first language. The dialogue still flows pretty well in most parts and the times that is doesn’t still aren’t so bad that it hinders my reading experience.
Another small thing: I didn’t like the character of Dilaya. I found her rather unjustifiably rude to Lan and, especially since she’s the only other girl in the story of continued importance, I was a bit turned off by the fact she hated Lan so much. I found her strained relationship with Lan to be rather frustrating to read about and I wish the only two girls in the story didn’t hate each other so much. It just felt catty to me and I hope they both develop as character throughout the series and grow fond of each other.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and I look forward to continuing the series!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Genocide, Racism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Rape
lettuce_read's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Colonisation
Moderate: Sexual assault and Death of parent
Minor: Genocide
taroroot's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
i loved the Chinese mythology involved in the story. i'm looking forward to seeing how Lan & Zen's paths cross and diverge.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Sexual content, Violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Death, Grief, and Death of parent
chaos_and_chapters's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Slavery, Medical content, and Cannibalism
sarahweyand's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
I read this book as my pick for my 2023 Popular Book Club challenge, knowing very little about it going in, and I was so pleasantly surprised! I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and our characters, and I thought the mystery of Lan's Seal was pretty compelling. I'm typically not the biggest fan of soft magic systems these days, but I thought this one was executed well, although the Elantian metal magic was too vague and Mistborn-esque for my liking.
I plan on keeping this book and continuing with the series, which says a lot because this book only came out last month and I typically go for standalones over series. Would definitely recommend this one, but maybe wait for the second book to come out first!
I plan on keeping this book and continuing with the series, which says a lot because this book only came out last month and I typically go for standalones over series. Would definitely recommend this one, but maybe wait for the second book to come out first!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Colonisation