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I am enthralled with the character advancement and changes in detail as Zetian becomes more informed on deeper layers of her main struggles with gender politics, societal constructs, and power dynamics around personal vs community freedom. Its great watching her work with what she has and try to make the most of her situation.
Moderate: Ableism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, War
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, War
Moderate: Slavery, Medical content, Pregnancy, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Fire/Fire injury
It's definitely a slower read than the first book, because it's much more concerned with politics, but I once I started to get antsy the plot always kicked in.
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Murder, War
Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Homophobia, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Vomit, Lesbophobia
The way that Wu Zetian is written is ah idk how to explain it. She is incredibly selfish and uneducated. However, she has a lot of character growth in learning how politics, economics, and laws have been created. She also finally recognizes that other women exist, even though I don't think she ever gets to the point where she doesn't believe she's not the center of the world. I think this is pretty accurate of the average person though. Most of us are so wrapped up in our own thoughts and experiences, we forget that we exist in communities with others.
I believe it's important to critically think, so I do have a couple critques. Despite Zhao's AMAZING writting exploring the dismantling of gender, class, and capitalistic systems (and slightly ablism)-there is no exploration of dismantling powers that support race. Throughout the book, there is about two or three mentions of people with different skin colors, but there isn't a discussion about it at all. Now, I do get that American racism is different from other parts of the world's racism/colorism, but I geninuely doubt that a fictional world that has capitalism and sexism remains without racism/colorism. If this aspect was included, this book would have been a 5 star for me. It's also important to recognize the violence throughout both books. I don't believe that true governmental changes can occur without some violence, but I do believe real change has more love and more community in it. I think this series should have been a duology though. I'll 100% still read the third book, but I'll agree with other reviews that this story should have ended here. Also the end lmao, wild.
I loved that there was a call to action at the end of this book. Zhao starts and ends their book very beautifully. It's warmth to read trigger warnings, clarifications about the origins that are tied but not directly reflective of history, and clarifications about systematic change.
"It is not human nature to accept subjugation."
Graphic: Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Classism
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Slavery, Torture, Grief, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Suicide, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, Pandemic/Epidemic
Graphic: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Violence, War
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Colonisation, Classism, Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Biphobia, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Deportation, Pandemic/Epidemic
Graphic: Genocide, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, War, Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Sexual content, Medical content, Death of parent, Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Pregnancy
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, Violence, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Confinement, Gore, Gun violence, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Gaslighting
Minor: Torture, Blood, Suicide attempt
After waiting for YEARS for this book the plot was everything I hoped for.
Only criticisms would be that some of the writing about political ideas were just a little too on the nose, and that for most of the book it felt like the characters were overcoming obstacles too easy (although this did not hold up towards the end)
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War
Moderate: Medical content, Trafficking, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Miscarriage, Vomit