Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Fireheart Tiger

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Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard

11 reviews

romie_chat's review

challenging tense fast-paced

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

3.0

as much as I enjoyed the themes explored in this book (really appreciated the discussion about colonialism), I could not completely connect to Thanh. I simply felt like I didn't know her and did not understand her. I also think one of the relationships evolved too fast to my liking. but that being said, it definitely made me want to pick other works from this author!

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vanillasweet's review

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adventurous emotional 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? Yes

4.25

This novella has a special place in my heart as I am Vietnamese. I loved seeing my language and culture come to life in this story. I don't often get to read something like this.

The worldbuilding is not expansive, but it's enough to get a clear picture of everything. I felt like I could relate distinctly to Thanh with her struggle to either be who her mother wants her to be or choose to do things for herself. The other characters are also vivid. I loved Giang and her protectiveness, how she may not understand everything about humans, but she does understand what she feels. Eldris is quite the villain, I could tell that she was slotted to be one from the beginning, but her relationship with Thanh was also something I saw as fleeting.

Of course, the novella isn't without its fault. I found it too short to fully flesh everything out. The romance between Thanh and Giang was instant. I would have preferred the author to use "chị" and "em" instead of "Big sis" and "lil sis", since it sounds less weird than its translation. But other than that, I don't have much qualms about it because I do have cultural understanding.

Overall, I had a good time reading this novella and I would love to get the chance for more like this.

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vaniavela's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

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elwirax's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
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 was enthralled by the Vietnamese inspired setting of "Fireheart Tiger" described in the synopsis and by the time I got to the promise of a sapphic romance I was sold. Sadly I didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped to.

It was difficult to connect to many of the characters, such are the consequences of a novel which is not fully fledged and relationships are established off the page. Giang was a very interesting character yet her character wasn't explored nearly as much as I'd hoped. The love triangle in this novella was quite insubstantial and overshadowed much of the lush worldbuilding, political intrigue and important themes such as the impact of colonialism.

I think that the potential was definitely there yet aspects where simply not fleshed out as much as they could've been if this novella was longer. There were enjoyable moments and the writing was quite lovely but as a whole I wanted a bit more in terms or character development and worldbuilding.

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bi_n_large's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

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kmfb87a5's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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ghosthermione's review against another edition

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5.0

It feels like everyone's been buzzing about this one and they were right!
I've been in love with the cover ever since I first saw it, I loved the concept and not gonna lie, the idea that there are (almost) no men in this book is a nice change.

So anyway, I gave it a read once it came out and... How do I word this. I just??? fucking love it???

This was a short read, about 2h (I'm a slow reader), but lots of content to enjoy and feelings to unpack. I've read Aliette de Bodard's stuff before and there's no doubt she's great at short stories, but so far I've enjoyed her medium-size writing more. Both the novella at the end of Of Wars etc. , In The Vanishers Palace and The Tea Master and the Detective. With a preference for her fantasy, so this was definitely one I was really looking forward to.

And it did not disappoint.

As advertised, there's only one man (a eunuch), in a minor role. It was really enjoyable to see a world of mainly women, both in positions of power and not, cruel and not. I also had a moment of "where are the fathers" before I remembered the only women thing, and it reminded me of how people often wonder "where are the mothers" in Shakespeare plays, because the dude often forgot to include women. It's a nice reversal.

It's been discussed in better words by others (and by the author herself) but this novella really goes into the themes of abuse and colonialism, and it was really striking. Thanh thinks she's found her way out of an abusive situation (with her mother) only to realise that maybe this is just walking into another more subtle abusive relationship. There was definitely a very realistic buildup in the way that abuse was portrayed (I don't want to give away too much here) and the colonial parallels rang very true. Viet Nam is the clear inspiration for Bình Hải, Thanh's country, and as a French person, it made me think about the fact that I know so little about the occupation of Viet Nam by France, and that's not something I'm proud of.

I don't know what to say about the relationships in the book without spoiling, but I'll just say it's good to see toxic sapphic relationships as well - ones where it's clear the sapphic aspect isn't the problem. And it offers sapphic alternatives too. Not just that, but the relationships made sense, Thanh's reactions made sense and were so relatable, I loved Giang (and loved to hate everyone but those two),and the pacing and flow in the whole novella was... honestly something a lot of writers could learn from.

I'm really impressed by how well-rounded the characters are, how complex the themes in so short a book. I want more but realistically it's perfect as it is and doesn't need anything added to it. Just, wow.

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libragazette's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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lylah's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

There’s a lot packed into this little novella—I wish it were longer if only to get a bigger glimpse into this intricately detailed world that Aliette de Bodard so stunningly sweeps you into. The main character Thanh deals with her past trauma and the reemergence of a controlling ex who, while trying to woo her again, is also trying to make her country bow down to her empire—an unfair dynamic from all angles, and one that Thanh gets realistically manipulated into.

As a side note, I remember reading an Asimov three times this length with all male characters and being disappointed that there was not a single woman. This book has maybe one man in it and he gets maybe one line so amen to that.

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llincathryn's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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