A review by cheye13
He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

Cohering my thoughts about this book and the duology together is a herculean challenge. It was not a pleasant reading experience, in that horrible things are happening to all characters at all times. It is one of my favorite books in that a vice was slowly, constantly contracting around my lungs until I finished it.

Even more so than the previous book, the transness in this one is tangible. A number of lines were clearly written in response to current events in our world. The interweaving of the ensemble is just as masterful as the first book. Beginning this book, I was afraid that it would fall short because my favorite element of book one couldn't continue (
that being the ouyang/esen relationship, when one of them is dead
), but my fears were unfounded. Not only did that thread continue, but it was intensified amongst other threads.

My options discussing this book are to break it down entirely and speak at length, or to simply say it's magnificent, and I suppose I'll settle for the latter.

(I strongly recommend checking content warnings. If you would prefer not to, keep the tone and events of book one in mind and know book two pushes a little bit further.)

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