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ehmannky's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
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
I love Zen Cho's writing so very much. It's so funny and heartfelt and it's just so magical. Honestly, I would have read 300 more pages of this story, but it's such a joy of a contained story. It's a lovely story of people on the margins, and those finding community and love with each other. It's not a straight up wuxia, but it exists in that world, and it's just lovely.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death, Murder, and War
abutler's review against another edition
adventurous
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? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Murder, and Misogyny
Minor: Genocide
hanz's review
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
griffinthief's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Child death, Deadnaming, and Sexual violence
podanotherjessi's review against another edition
adventurous
relaxing
medium-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
4.5
I don't know how to talk about what I thought of this book because, the real thought is just that I liked it. It was a cute little story, but I don't know if it's going to really stick with me at all. The characters were sweet, and I loved their interactions. The way everyone felt like a family was very sweet. I reccomend this as a sweet, short book to read when you want a little bit of adventure.
Characters: 8
Plot: 9
Setting: 10
General appeal: 9
Writing style: 10
Originality: 9
Ending: 9
Characters: 8
Plot: 9
Setting: 10
General appeal: 9
Writing style: 10
Originality: 9
Ending: 9
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Death
Moderate: Gun violence and Religious bigotry
mar's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-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
2.0
this book started off pretty fun, but. i Really didn't enjoy the way the transmasc character was handled. the hints that he was trans made me excited at first, but the not-really-consensual coming out that's kinda treated like a Big Reveal/Plot Twist and the language used to talk abt it just... made my skin crawl. like "brother, does everyone know you’re a woman?" or "I live the life of a man, but my heart hasn't changed from when I was a woman. This is the body of a woman. But it carries the sins of a man".... Feels Bad. especially the "body of a woman" part like UGH god... it was very messy and genuinely not something i'd have expected from a book published in 2020, especially one i've seen praised for its LGBT representation. left a bad taste in my mouth :/
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Deadnaming and Transphobia
Minor: Death and Violence
bookishbutch's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
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
5.0
What a fun book! I'm a sucker for found family, so I knew I had to read this, and I was not disappointed. I love how gentle this book was in comparison to other fantasy books. It felt more intimate in a way, since the book mainly centers on just the core group of main characters. All in all, a very nice read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Transphobia
Minor: Sexual assault
herk's review against another edition
adventurous
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Sexism
Minor: Sexual content and Sexual assault
firefly's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Sexism
Minor: Deadnaming
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water explores faith, sacrilege, and reverence in the midst of a silent war. Beginning slowly with a truly fantastic second half that ties everything together, make some room for this novella on your TBR.
The tone is very light and the story feels fun at first, laughing in the face of danger in a dark time. The dynamic of a tightly-knit group hesitantly absorbing a newcomer works really well. It’s short but it packs a lot of story and excellent character work into a small volume. As the reader becomes more comfortable with the characters the tone gets more serious. It's also possible that I missed some of the ways in which it was more serious from the start, and really I was getting more comfortable with the story and gradually realizing what it was doing. It lingered in some uncomfortable moments in a good way, a lot of the tension is due to interpersonal drama that is somewhere between joking and deadly at any moment. The focus gradually narrowed to being about two members of the group finding an equilibrium with one another while still managing the macguffin.
For the first third or so of the book I thought it was good, but I wasn't sure yet why a friend of mine had recommended it so highly. Then, just before the halfway mark, something clicked and the story went from pretty good to really amazing (I know exactly what did it, I just can't say because of spoilers). The second half is just so satisfying and this book is great. A quick read and a very good one.
The tone is very light and the story feels fun at first, laughing in the face of danger in a dark time. The dynamic of a tightly-knit group hesitantly absorbing a newcomer works really well. It’s short but it packs a lot of story and excellent character work into a small volume. As the reader becomes more comfortable with the characters the tone gets more serious. It's also possible that I missed some of the ways in which it was more serious from the start, and really I was getting more comfortable with the story and gradually realizing what it was doing. It lingered in some uncomfortable moments in a good way, a lot of the tension is due to interpersonal drama that is somewhere between joking and deadly at any moment. The focus gradually narrowed to being about two members of the group finding an equilibrium with one another while still managing the macguffin.
For the first third or so of the book I thought it was good, but I wasn't sure yet why a friend of mine had recommended it so highly. Then, just before the halfway mark, something clicked and the story went from pretty good to really amazing (I know exactly what did it, I just can't say because of spoilers). The second half is just so satisfying and this book is great. A quick read and a very good one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Sexism
Minor: Deadnaming
CW for brief misgendering/deadnaming, sexism, massacre, death.
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