Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang

240 reviews

gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

This is a tragedy on all accounts. 600 pages of pain. 

 It really shows how well Kuang understand the human aspect and the tactical aspect of the war that she’s written. it was painful, heartbreaking, has you building empathy and sympathy for characters who are absolute monsters, because you understand what they’ve gone through and their trauma and what shapes them. But it also does not skirt around the fact that what they are doing is also completely unforgivable and evil.
It still has the amazing action sequences, he ramped up to 11. each chapter has amazing dialogue and lessons to be learned. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Xenophobia, War, and Self harm

Moderate: Medical trauma, Genocide, Death, Colonisation, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, and Cannibalism

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Xenophobia, War, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Cannibalism, Colonisation, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Genocide, and Torture

Minor: Rape

brynalexa's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

For context, I do not normally read war books and this series did not convince me to. That being said, this book was the most compelling. There was not enough evidence to justify a lot of the decisions the characters made about each other. Part one was more of the same of the last two books: a violent, repetitive drag. Part two was just confusion. 

Part three was very fast paced. 

The ending was satisfying and also infuriating. A story about the horror and hopelessness that colonialism is.  Devastating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Body horror, Cannibalism, Drug use, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Confinement, Death, Racism, Xenophobia, Animal death, Child death, Grief, Hate crime, Pandemic/Epidemic, Toxic friendship, War, Abortion, Addiction, Classism, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Alcohol, Torture, and Violence

nadia's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-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

4.0

I think this was a solid, clever resolution to the trilogy! There were parts of this I really enjoyed and parts I never fully grokked — mainly around character alliances, motivations, and some of the fantasy elements — but just went with!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Death, War, Blood, Sexual violence, Murder, Body horror, and Violence

Moderate: Torture, Suicide, and Colonisation

emrosch's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Not as good as the first two books, but still a great conclusion to one of the best – if not the best – historical fantasy book series I've ever read.

It took me a long time to get through it. It started off great and then became SOOOO slow, I honestly just wanted to be done with it after reading about 75%. It felt repetitive and really frustrating (and not in the good way). But that changed with the last couple of chapters, made everything SO worth it. Totally changed my entire opinion about book #3. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Body horror, Colonisation, Murder, Suicide, Blood, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Violence, and War

Moderate: Rape, Cannibalism, and Torture

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Racism

winter2001's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Xenophobia, War, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racism, Colonisation, Cursing, Cannibalism, Genocide, and Torture

skitch41's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Colonisation, and Murder

Minor: Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, and Racism

winterwoodbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful slow-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

The ending was perfect for this amazing series and I loved everything about it.
The character work is immaculate.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Genocide, Murder, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Child death, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Trafficking, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Drug use, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Medical trauma, Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Racism, Self harm, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Colonisation, Deportation, Emotional abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, Vomit, and War

teleporting_pickle's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Wow… just wow. Like every other review I’m gonna say it was such a good series and it will be in my mind always. The final book was a perfect chapter that came to a close.

The shear destruction the country has been through is crazy. 

The city that the Hespaeians made in such a short time is double crazy especially how much they changed towards their ideals. And it’s weird thing because on one hand their improving some aspects of life there but on the other hand erasing the culture that was there to start

Now on to the ending I knew it wasn’t over with those 50pages left and the footnote for the author saying I was going to cry. 

She was correct last pages took me😪 Rin was constantly someone who thought fighting was the only option but I’m glad in that moment she saw clarity that she could give her country that fighting chance but it didn’t include her or Kitay.

Favorite part was Sister Petra’s meet and greet with the gods.

 
And lastly Nezhas pov at the end and also in the bonus section got me torn to pieces. Their relationship was a twisted one like fire and water. I was they could’ve found happiness but I don’t think it was in their fates.

Fav quote of many~
“Take what you want, it said. I’ll hate you for it. But I’ll love you forever. I can’t help but love you.
Ruin me, ruin us, and I’ll let you”
Bonus
“He knew exactly what choice she’d made and what she’d intended. And that made everything—hating her, loving her, surviving her—so much harder.
Fix this”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Murder, Colonisation, War, Blood, and Violence

greciamj1958's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Mental illness, Slavery, Violence, War, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Misogyny, and Racism