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par4phrasing's reviews
105 reviews
残次品 [Can Ci Pin | Imperfections] by priest
5.0
"In my soul, the brilliant, monumental civilizations and history of man crystallized from the dawn of creation until today.
How finite my mortal life is.
Yet I am eternal."
I want to preface this by saying that I usually don’t read sci-fi novels, it’s a genre I’ve barely explored, so my thoughts might seem a bit all over the place. However, Priest can apparently make me appreciate every genre, so buckle up for this mess.
Even after finishing this novel I don’t think I’ve truly comprehended the extend of the world Priest built, this might just come from the boundless and uncharted nature of space and the universe as a whole, but there is so much thought behind every character, every planet and every action it left me speechless.
Slowly discovering this world throughout the eyes of the characters felt like slowly falling in love with it and the people around you, and also watching things change, tragedy strike and the consequences of these happenings. Especially through Lin Jingheng’s character arc this was very apparent, seeing his cold exterior slowly chip away to reveal his caring and protective nature as he found a home in the Eighth Galaxy and Lu Bixing was incredible.
On the note of Lu Bixing, I don’t think the development of a character ever affected me as much as his, not only because you could witness his slow descent into ‘madness’, but also because you could see how grief fundamentally changed him as a person throughout the years. When first introduced to him you experience him as this incredibly passionate person, with a goal to improve people’s lives to the best of his ability, and he does, with his passion he ignites a fire in the people around him like no one else. But seeing his passion slowly fade away under all of the tragedy he had to witness, losing the closest people to him and then having to take on so much responsibility broke me. He practically turned into the person Lin Jingheng used to be.
The dynamic between him and Lin Jingheng shifted significantly after their reunion, before it was always Lu Bixing who had to reach out to Lin Jingheng, but from that point it was Lu Bixing who needed reassurance to heal from his own trauma and see how much people genuinely believe in him. He always had so much faith in others, especially Lin Jingheng, and now it was time for Lin Jingheng to believe in him. His process of healing still makes me want to cry!
I also really enjoyed Priest’s references to different classics in this, it really gave the world, and antagonists specifically, much more depth. So that you could further emphasise with their viewpoints to a certain extend, see why they turned out the way they did, but still acknowledge how, at the end of the day, ended up on the wrong path. (Lin Jingshu especially was such an interesting character!!!)
And all of the philosophy behind the different viewpoints of characters, their morals, convictions and goals, I feel like I have to collect my thoughts more on this aspect, but I’ve always been a fan behind the discussion of what freedom actually means to humanity and how our own inventions affect the fate of society as a whole!
There’s so much more I could say, but I’m going to end it here because otherwise I will just write an entire essay. I really enjoyed this novel!!
Ballad of Sword and Wine: Qiang Jin Jiu (Novel) Vol. 1 by Tang Jiu Qing
5.0
“It was the sunlight beyond his reach, the bright spirit he no longer possessed. There was a part of him that didn't want to return it.”
Okay, I haven’t really been in the mood to write reviews recently, but for QJJ I have to write at least a little because this novel has such a special place in my heart.
This first volume is already a beautiful insight into the complex political world t97 is building, I know for many it’s going to be confusing at the beginning, but the hurdles in your path are definitely going to pay off. The politics in QJJ are set up not only to be intriguing, to keep you guessing to a certain degree, but they’re also explained in detail through conversations the characters have and their subsequent actions, which I’ve always loved about this novel because not every author does it in such detail and from different perspectives.
However, not only the politics and world building are praise-worthy, it’s also the character development (although in this volume we haven’t seen the extend of it yet and won’t for a good while). Especially when it comes to the main characters Shen Lanzhou and Xiao Ce’an, they both not only develop as a unit together with their extremely unique bond, but also as individual characters.
Coming from a person who is reading this novel a second time now, the beauty of QJJ really is in how, despite knowing what will happen next, you still feel practically the same excitement and thrill you felt when you first read it. I haven’t had this much fun rereading a novel in a bit, especially since the first time reading it had a such significant emotional impact on me.
Okay, I haven’t really been in the mood to write reviews recently, but for QJJ I have to write at least a little because this novel has such a special place in my heart.
This first volume is already a beautiful insight into the complex political world t97 is building, I know for many it’s going to be confusing at the beginning, but the hurdles in your path are definitely going to pay off. The politics in QJJ are set up not only to be intriguing, to keep you guessing to a certain degree, but they’re also explained in detail through conversations the characters have and their subsequent actions, which I’ve always loved about this novel because not every author does it in such detail and from different perspectives.
However, not only the politics and world building are praise-worthy, it’s also the character development (although in this volume we haven’t seen the extend of it yet and won’t for a good while). Especially when it comes to the main characters Shen Lanzhou and Xiao Ce’an, they both not only develop as a unit together with their extremely unique bond, but also as individual characters.
Coming from a person who is reading this novel a second time now, the beauty of QJJ really is in how, despite knowing what will happen next, you still feel practically the same excitement and thrill you felt when you first read it. I haven’t had this much fun rereading a novel in a bit, especially since the first time reading it had a such significant emotional impact on me.
The Husky & His White Cat Shizun: Erha He Ta De Bai Mao Shizun (Novel) Vol. 5 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou
5.0
Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu (Novel) Vol. 4 by Meng Xi Shi
5.0
I will die on the hill that Shen Qiao fell first and Yan Wushi fell harder!!
I loved this volume, despite how short it was. I can definitely see why people, who haven’t read the complete novel yet, would be annoyed at them ending this volume at this point. Knowing what is about to come though, I cannot wait for the last volume to come out!!
The “cliffhanger” aside, I adore the relationship development we are getting in this volume and especially Yan Wushi reaping what he sowed by betraying Shen Qiao. (lmao) I like seeing the subtle changes in his character, the new way he behaves around Shen Qiao and the tenderness that has wormed itself into his actions as he realised how special Shen Qiao is to him. This slow process of him needing to put in effort to gain Shen Qiao’s trust back really displays how much he actually has changed his behaviour towards him and I found that very satisfying to read!!
镇魂 by priest, priest
4.5
"As long as he still wants me, I will never let him down, whether in life or in death."
I can definitely see why some people wouldn’t enjoy this book, but as a person who has always been interested in different types of mythology this was a really interesting read for me. I enjoyed how you weren’t instantly thrown into the really heavy aspects of it and it gradually was introduced to you through the eyes of the characters! Although some parts of the mythology did confuse me a bit at times, because there were a lot of lies and half-truths being spun around these aspects of the plot, I still enjoyed it and the full explanation later mostly resolved that for me!
One thing I love about past-life storylines is this subtle familiarity the characters feel with each other, places, objects and the actions that connect them to the person they were before being reincarnated. It’s all of these obscure hints to them having a history that keep me hooked, desperate to find out how they are connected and what they did in their past lives to end up where they are now. The way Zhao Yunlan knew from the beginning on that he and Shen Wei had a special connection and seeing him slowly figure out how his position as the Guardian came to be and who he was in his past life was so interesting to watch. He never lost his charm throughout the process either and always kept his little quirks that made him who he is, I really enjoyed that!
Also I just loved how Shen Wei, at the beginning, was practically portrayed to be a character who cannot lie to save his life, but then he lied and broke his promises to Zhao Yunlan multiple times to save him. Not only did that add to the surprise factor of finding out how deeply involved he actually was in the schemes going on, but also it showed how much Zhao Yunlan trusted him, and still trusts him, even after everything he did. His character as a whole is so deeply based around restraining his desires, hiding his true self, and feeling like he doesn’t deserve to be with the one he loves and the only way he thought he could deserve to be with him was either watching him from afar or lying and sacrificing himself for the greater good. His character arc of slowly letting himself indulge more, because he knew his life was coming to an end, and then begging Zhao Yunlan to die with him, only to end up dying on his own anyway broke me.
And I don’t think I have ever felt this satisfied with the way the ending of a novel was handled. I genuinely thought that at the end the Great Seal was going to be restored once again and everything would somehow hold back to normal in one way or another, but no, Priest pleasantly surprised me by resolving issues I didn’t think would or could get resolved at all!! Seriously, the ending was better than anything I could’ve hoped for, Shen Wei sacrificing himself and gaining a soul at the end, so his issues with feeling like he doesn’t deserve Zhao Yunlan get resolved?? The goal all of the chaos era gods, especially Shennong, wanted to achieve finally being completed and therefore resolving the corruption in the underworld and the ghost tribe?? I didn’t think I would enjoy the ending as much as I did, but Priest far exceeded my expectations with this!!
黄金台 (Golden Stage) by 苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)
4.0
"Even if he ascends to the sky or descends to the Yellow Springs, I would go with him. It isn't that he cannot be apart from me, it's that I can't be separated from him."
I feel like I wanted to like this novel more than I ended up doing. I really enjoyed it, for a big portion as well, but in the later parts it kind of fell off on me.
While the relationship between Fu Sheng and Yan Xiaohan was handled beautifully, the politics were… okay… but before I get into the parts I didn’t like I want to talk about what I did enjoy.
The development between Fu Sheng and Yan Xiaohan was quite well done, from the beginning on you could tell that there was such a special connection between them and their backstory only solidified this point. It was really interesting to see them
bud heads in the beginning because of their differing world views and then watching the process of them both slowly ending up on the same side was great!
Both of them suffer with big inadequacy issues and seeing them help each other through it step by step was what really sold me on their relationship, they love each other so much and want to stand by each other’s side through every struggle!!
I’m also a sucker for characters, who have been forced to stand on their own for years, finally finding someone they can depend on. The vulnerability that comes with finally letting someone in, sharing your burdens with them and letting themselves be cared for is such a satisfying process to watch and they both developed so much through it because they both were in either position!!!
The first half of the novel especially had me hooked, the mystery solving intrigue, the chaotic court politics and their budding relationship were tied together really well!!
The second part kind of lost me though… When I read a political novel I prefer to have the happenings laid out to me through the characters’ experiences and seeing their reactions to these happenings. I love watching the process of them scheming, putting their plans together and then setting them into motion, being able to follow their process every step of the way. This novel didn’t really give me that. The politics felt like they were just directly spelled out to me a lot of times, “this happened and then that happened and then they did this at this date,” this type of stuff and then adding one of two more scenes where you can actually see what the characters are doing, but that was it.
That sadly kind of took the intrigue out of the novel for me sadly, but I still enjoyed the relationship between Fu Sheng and Yan Xiaohan despite that.
Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu (Novel) Vol. 3 by Meng Xi Shi
4.0
This arc will definitely always be one of my favourites, so much character development happens in it and we finally get a real glimpse of how Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao have changed each other!!
Seeing Yan Wushi’s softness for Shen Qiao slip through the cracks and noticing how he’s slowly starting to put trust in him and his character now perfectly portrays how much of an impact Shen Qiao’s refusal to change for the worse had on him. He’s finally starting to believe in his genuine kindness!!
And Shen Qiao’s development also cannot be ignored, he’s lost all of his initial naivety now, even uses some strategies Yan Wushi used out in the world, but he still persistently believes in the good in people. It was especially refreshing seeing him be spiteful with his words and telling people what he actually thinks instead of keeping up appearances!!
Seeing Yan Wushi’s softness for Shen Qiao slip through the cracks and noticing how he’s slowly starting to put trust in him and his character now perfectly portrays how much of an impact Shen Qiao’s refusal to change for the worse had on him. He’s finally starting to believe in his genuine kindness!!
And Shen Qiao’s development also cannot be ignored, he’s lost all of his initial naivety now, even uses some strategies Yan Wushi used out in the world, but he still persistently believes in the good in people. It was especially refreshing seeing him be spiteful with his words and telling people what he actually thinks instead of keeping up appearances!!