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4.45 AVERAGE
4.45 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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:
Complicated
I can't possibly express how amazing this novel is. I mean, what the actual heck? How can anyone think of a system this interesting and captivating? Every single door has its story, and every single time i found myself so immersed in it. It's pretty gruesome, spooky and dark, each time a little more!
If you're thinking about reading this for the romance, you need to be prepared and have some REAL patience. For anyone wondering, the romance starts atthe end of Chapter 105, before both MMC enter their 10th door.
But honestly, i dived into this for the thrill, and it delivered.
Regarding the differences with the show, both work are incredible in their own way, and very different from one another on many levels. Don't go tell yourself that you can skip reading the novel because you watched the show, uh-uh. You can expect 4 exclusive doors ("Slender man", "The Minotaur", "Human Mirrors", and "Statue's Wish") and many characters that you'll wish were in the show as well!
If you're thinking about reading this for the romance, you need to be prepared and have some REAL patience. For anyone wondering, the romance starts at
But honestly, i dived into this for the thrill, and it delivered.
Regarding the differences with the show, both work are incredible in their own way, and very different from one another on many levels. Don't go tell yourself that you can skip reading the novel because you watched the show, uh-uh. You can expect 4 exclusive doors ("Slender man", "The Minotaur", "Human Mirrors", and "Statue's Wish") and many characters that you'll wish were in the show as well!
Loved the concept of the book and the different lives inside the doors. I don’t read horror but I could not leave this book and finished it in a few days.
LQS and RNZ… love both of them.
Few deaths made me cry… LDY and TZZ… I didn’t expect it at all.
So wanted to give it a 5 star but that plot twist was unnecessary! I’m going to pretend I haven’t read it.
LQS and RNZ… love both of them.
Few deaths made me cry… LDY and TZZ… I didn’t expect it at all.
So wanted to give it a 5 star but that plot twist was unnecessary! I’m going to pretend I haven’t read it.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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:
Complicated
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Murder
Moderate: Cannibalism
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
I would like to take a quiet walk and reflect on life now.
I suddenly want to cry for some reason, I read this book for almost a month, I'm so sad to see it go.
I suddenly want to cry for some reason, I read this book for almost a month, I'm so sad to see it go.
"All he wanted was to die with Ruan Nanzhu. He hadn’t thought this last wish of his would be so difficult to achieve."
.
Where to even start. I've been putting off reviewing this novel for a week because it would mean that my time with it really did end.
At its core, KoD is an ode to the simple things in life. Somehow, with each gory death, you end up appreciating all the moments spent with our (temporarily
.
Where to even start. I've been putting off reviewing this novel for a week because it would mean that my time with it really did end.
At its core, KoD is an ode to the simple things in life. Somehow, with each gory death, you end up appreciating all the moments spent with our (temporarily
On the verge of death one can enter the world of "the doors", to fight through countless terrifying horrors for a chance at rebirth. Lin Qiushi, diagnosed with terminal liver cancer, is one of those given such a chance and he, well, he just takes it in stride. He's calm, straight-faced, down-to-earth, and extremely adaptable to any changes in life - even if it means imminent death. Whereas, Ruan Nanzhu, our cross-dress loving male lead loves to put on a show, pulling out all the dramatics, just to have a little fun while running for their lives.
The stories and solutions within the doors were all very intriguing, to the point I actually preferred when they were inside the doors. It was a lot of fun looking up some of the folk lore and tall tales behind the doors (and really nostalgic when Slenderman made an appearance). While there are people getting sliced in half or skinned alive, the writing isn't nearly as gorey as other novels I've read. This author's expertise is more towards the psychological impact. It's easy to find yourself holding your breath wondering what terrible thing is going to happen next or how the characters are going to get out of a sticky situation. Then finally heaving a sigh of relief along with the characters once the key is found.
While it seems not many people enjoyed the 11th door I think it was a great culmination of how one handled themselves within the doors. The 11th door would be far more terrifying for someone who slaughtered their way there as opposed to Qiushi and Nanzhu who showed kindness where they could, even to some monsters. The doors provided more opportunity and choice to those who still retained some morals while still giving a happy ending to all that traversed the doors.
The plot twist with the 12th door thrown at us in the extras, no less, was certainly a disappointment though. Felt a bit like a cop-out. There was really no foreshadowing to it and I probably would have been better off without ever having read the extra at all. It just seemed really unnecessary and certainly didn't provide enough background for it to make a real impact. Really, the doors in all could have used more backstory. We never even learn much about the special powers some players were granted.
What really made me knock back a star though was that this author really seems to have a thing against women. If there was an opportunity to go off about women being weak, jealous, and/or dramatic they took it. Even Nanzhu's cross-dressing often seemed like a way to mock the weak-willed and timid women of the novel. The few women who showed any ounce of stoicism were either monsters, put on the back burner, or just flat out killed. The one woman in the Obsidian team was just relegated to being the cook of the team; you never learn anything else about her and she's pretty much always in the kitchen.
Past that, the dynamic between Qiushi and Nanzhu was a lot of fun and emotionally intense, though falling a little flat at times. Got a bit tiring constantly hearing how absolutely, world-ending, beautiful Nanzhu is. And, despite the frequent bring up of whether Qiushi preferred Nanzhu as himself or in cross-dress there was never any serious talk about it. Also, the one thing that really intrigued me about Qiushi was his complete lack of romantic interest in the past but it's never brought up again once he falls for Nanzhu. They had a great relationship built on acceptance for who the other was and the emotional turmoil of possibly leaving the other behind in death was explored well, but everything else was kind of left on the wayside.
All in all, the world of the doors is an incredible look at the human psyche when it comes to death, losing loved ones, and the lengths people will go to to ensure their survival. It just needed more world building and less gender essentialism.
The stories and solutions within the doors were all very intriguing, to the point I actually preferred when they were inside the doors. It was a lot of fun looking up some of the folk lore and tall tales behind the doors (and really nostalgic when Slenderman made an appearance). While there are people getting sliced in half or skinned alive, the writing isn't nearly as gorey as other novels I've read. This author's expertise is more towards the psychological impact. It's easy to find yourself holding your breath wondering what terrible thing is going to happen next or how the characters are going to get out of a sticky situation. Then finally heaving a sigh of relief along with the characters once the key is found.
While it seems not many people enjoyed the 11th door I think it was a great culmination of how one handled themselves within the doors. The 11th door would be far more terrifying for someone who slaughtered their way there as opposed to Qiushi and Nanzhu who showed kindness where they could, even to some monsters. The doors provided more opportunity and choice to those who still retained some morals while still giving a happy ending to all that traversed the doors.
The plot twist with the 12th door thrown at us in the extras, no less, was certainly a disappointment though. Felt a bit like a cop-out. There was really no foreshadowing to it and I probably would have been better off without ever having read the extra at all. It just seemed really unnecessary and certainly didn't provide enough background for it to make a real impact. Really, the doors in all could have used more backstory. We never even learn much about the special powers some players were granted.
What really made me knock back a star though was that this author really seems to have a thing against women. If there was an opportunity to go off about women being weak, jealous, and/or dramatic they took it. Even Nanzhu's cross-dressing often seemed like a way to mock the weak-willed and timid women of the novel. The few women who showed any ounce of stoicism were either monsters, put on the back burner, or just flat out killed. The one woman in the Obsidian team was just relegated to being the cook of the team; you never learn anything else about her and she's pretty much always in the kitchen.
Past that, the dynamic between Qiushi and Nanzhu was a lot of fun and emotionally intense, though falling a little flat at times. Got a bit tiring constantly hearing how absolutely, world-ending, beautiful Nanzhu is. And, despite the frequent bring up of whether Qiushi preferred Nanzhu as himself or in cross-dress there was never any serious talk about it. Also, the one thing that really intrigued me about Qiushi was his complete lack of romantic interest in the past but it's never brought up again once he falls for Nanzhu. They had a great relationship built on acceptance for who the other was and the emotional turmoil of possibly leaving the other behind in death was explored well, but everything else was kind of left on the wayside.
All in all, the world of the doors is an incredible look at the human psyche when it comes to death, losing loved ones, and the lengths people will go to to ensure their survival. It just needed more world building and less gender essentialism.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
wow! this was a ride for sure. in all honesty i didn't really know what i was getting into with this one but it gripped me right from the get-go. through all the horror i fell in love with the cast of characters, especially our main duo, love you lil freaks♡ but even the side characters were fleshed out enough to make you have feelings about them (positive or negative). i've come across similar concepts before but i think the author executed it really well, like the mysteries were complex, i could rarely figure them out so the tension got me every time. the end as well... omg i didn't see it coming at all hats off to a plot twist well executed is all i can say.
anyway, overall i loved it a lot and imo the second door was actually the creepiest, idk i could just picture it so vividly it freaked me out lmao
anyway, overall i loved it a lot and imo the second door was actually the creepiest, idk i could just picture it so vividly it freaked me out lmao