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immovabletype's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Violence, War, Death of parent, Abandonment, Ableism, Alcoholism, Child death, Classism, Death, Gore, Murder, Body horror, Cannibalism, Cursing, and Excrement
Moderate: Confinement, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual content, and Trafficking
cadence99's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
5.0
It’s so rare that I find a book that is truly top of my list, five stars, yet this one has absolutely hit it out of the park. A rolling, poetic masterpiece that weaves together two ends of a long tapestry with such beautiful precision. I listened to this one on audio and I’d HIGHLY recommend the experience as it very much feels in the style of oral storytelling. I suspect that this book will stay on my mind for a long time, and it has certainly earned a spot among my all time favorite reads.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Vomit, War, Death of parent, Torture, Violence, Grief, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Cannibalism, Death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Addiction, and Alcohol
astrohannah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Ableism, Animal death, Gore, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Murder
dryadsreadingnook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism, Violence, and Death
Moderate: War, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, and Torture
the_wandering_library's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
This book has truly changed my life; and I would give it 6 stars if possible. This is a contender for my book of the year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and War
Minor: Sexual content
mallorypen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
Woooooooof what a ride this was - the writing made me think of a mix between fairytale and a dream. This felt like listening to an oral history, in both how the core story was presented and in the second-person narrative outside the inverted theater.
The highlights for me:
- This style of storytelling felt comforting, even when the subject matter got gory or disturbing. It gave the same sense as listening to a folktale, where some of the details feel nonsensical to a modern audience and you find yourself looking for and finding familiar archetypes despite some of the weirder concepts. Gods and goddesses, the anthropomorphic elements of moon and water, the heroes and antiheroes, the pacing of a journey - it all could have been told around a campfire. I also felt like the entire first song from Aida could have been applied to this story (every story, new or ancient, beggar tale, or work of art, all are tales of human failings, all are tales of love at heart).
- Keema of the Dwari tribe. What a stellar character! I did guess thatthe tribe wasn’t real but his reasons for the lie were heartbreaking and sweet. He was my favorite kind of hero - flawed, but ultimately so good. I love rooting for a good guy.
- the PURPLE BIRD. That full-circle arc was incredibly satisfying. In fact, there were several times where a callback was made and I would think to myself that this is a story that knows itself and its outcomes VERY well.
- the questionable morality of literally everyone but Keema. The moon was selfish; the tortoises were complicit as much as they were victims; the Terrors were awful but also understandable. The emperors - all of ‘em - were downright horrific, but things didn’t magically get better when their dynasty was removed.
- the framing narrative of the inverted theater and the fact that we never really knew who the narrator was, or where the old country was. I also loved the dreamlike quality - that also proved to be godlike - in that we got snippets of everyone’s thoughts as the narrative mentioned background characters.
The drawbacks:
- this was a loooooong story. I don’t think it could be shorter and still have the same impact, but it was a lot to get through.
- the deus ex machina was good (because it IS a love story) but it was also a deus ex machina. Literally.
- the entry into the story was confusing; it worked insofar that it had a dreamlike logic to it, but I spent more time than I wanted to wondering when the plot would show itself. Some of that is definitely on me as a reader, but it was something I noted early on.
- though I enjoyed the story and rated it highly, this isn’t something I can see myself picking up again to read for pleasure.
The highlights for me:
- This style of storytelling felt comforting, even when the subject matter got gory or disturbing. It gave the same sense as listening to a folktale, where some of the details feel nonsensical to a modern audience and you find yourself looking for and finding familiar archetypes despite some of the weirder concepts. Gods and goddesses, the anthropomorphic elements of moon and water, the heroes and antiheroes, the pacing of a journey - it all could have been told around a campfire. I also felt like the entire first song from Aida could have been applied to this story (every story, new or ancient, beggar tale, or work of art, all are tales of human failings, all are tales of love at heart).
- Keema of the Dwari tribe. What a stellar character! I did guess that
- the PURPLE BIRD. That full-circle arc was incredibly satisfying. In fact, there were several times where a callback was made and I would think to myself that this is a story that knows itself and its outcomes VERY well.
- the questionable morality of literally everyone but Keema. The moon was selfish; the tortoises were complicit as much as they were victims; the Terrors were awful but also understandable. The emperors - all of ‘em - were downright horrific, but things didn’t magically get better when their dynasty was removed.
- the framing narrative of the inverted theater and the fact that we never really knew who the narrator was, or where the old country was. I also loved the dreamlike quality - that also proved to be godlike - in that we got snippets of everyone’s thoughts as the narrative mentioned background characters.
The drawbacks:
- this was a loooooong story. I don’t think it could be shorter and still have the same impact, but it was a lot to get through.
- the deus ex machina was good (because it IS a love story) but it was also a deus ex machina. Literally.
- the entry into the story was confusing; it worked insofar that it had a dreamlike logic to it, but I spent more time than I wanted to wondering when the plot would show itself. Some of that is definitely on me as a reader, but it was something I noted early on.
- though I enjoyed the story and rated it highly, this isn’t something I can see myself picking up again to read for pleasure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Body shaming, Child death, Gore, and War
Minor: Sexual content
lumidouce's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
It is difficult to rate this book, because I genuinely adored everything about it, except for one glaring issue: the ableism. At least for Keema, it is presented as a bad thing (in the end, at least; not as much in the beginning), but I cannot say the same for other characters, namely the tortoise and the Third Terror.
The positives: I loved the concept of the Inverted Theater. The writing style is excellent, and I personally was not confused by the POV switches. The romance between Keema and Jun felt very natural and not at all forced, unlike a lot of fantasy novels I've read lately. The fantasy world-building was immersive and wonderful, and I felt like I was able to connect to the characters and the world they were in.
The negatives: the ableism. Some characters are described in ableist ways and are treated poorly by the cast due to their differences.The tortoise is constantly referred to as "defective," and the Third Terror was shunned by everyone and infantilized. I did not feel that either of them got the ending they deserved or were treated very well in the end. There are a lot of sexual scenes or comments that felt unnecessary and out-of-place. There is quite a bit of graphic content, including blood, gore, and cannibalism, which I normally do not mind, but some of the descriptions of cannibalism were even too much for me.
Overall, I loved the book, and would give it 4.5 stars if not for the ableism. But I believe it was done out of ignorance and not malice, so I don't feel right giving it 1 star, either. For now, I will leave it unrated.
The positives: I loved the concept of the Inverted Theater. The writing style is excellent, and I personally was not confused by the POV switches. The romance between Keema and Jun felt very natural and not at all forced, unlike a lot of fantasy novels I've read lately. The fantasy world-building was immersive and wonderful, and I felt like I was able to connect to the characters and the world they were in.
The negatives: the ableism. Some characters are described in ableist ways and are treated poorly by the cast due to their differences.
Overall, I loved the book, and would give it 4.5 stars if not for the ableism. But I believe it was done out of ignorance and not malice, so I don't feel right giving it 1 star, either. For now, I will leave it unrated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cannibalism, and Gore
Moderate: Ableism and Sexual content
laraloops's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
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
5.0
Absolutely gorgeous. It took me longer than usual to finish because I kept stopping and rereading paragraphs of beautiful prose. The alternating POV's are masterfully done, it's mainly told in a theater setting and the side characters chiming in with their thoughts is such an amazing and cool concept that immersed me in the story.
The story is heart wrenching and beautiful and so worth it. The magic and gods were dark and fantastical. I cried multiple times and it ends masterfully. One of the best books I've ever read.
The story is heart wrenching and beautiful and so worth it. The magic and gods were dark and fantastical. I cried multiple times and it ends masterfully. One of the best books I've ever read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, War, Animal cruelty, Violence, Excrement, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual violence
blakeandbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Torture, Grief, Murder, Kidnapping, and Death
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Sexual content
jesslinnea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Murder, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Gore, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Cannibalism
Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Confinement, Sexual content, Torture, and War
Gore is not a main component of this book, so the detail is usually minimal. However violence and death/murder are very commonplace.