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azilisssss's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Vomit and Pregnancy
julesmcf's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
However, it is not a light read as it deals in detail with the cruelties that were committed in the end of the 1940s and 50s on Jeju.
Graphic: Sexual assault and War
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Fire/Fire injury
camillemelaleuca's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Violence and Grief
Moderate: Child death and Death of parent
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and War
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The sections with historical, social and cultural informations were very interesting (at least for me) but I don't think that they were very well integrated into the narration and I can see how someone might find them a bit too much didactic and dry.
The historical events that are the basis for this story were brutal and certainly they cannot be brushed aside, but I still think that an author can approach the portraying of violence in a way that does not feel gratuitous (as it did for me in this case). I don't think that such a violence was well transposed on the page, at times it just felt like a list of atrocities, just for shock value.
In general, I just didn't get along much with the writing style, I found it eithera bit plain or a bit too much overdone, without much subtlety in terms of both narration and characterization.
Speaking of characters, I have to say that I struggled to connect with them, even when it came to the main character, Youngsook, there were very few moments when I felt really engrossed in her story and her feelings. I think that the characters' emotions were not so well portrayed, they were either too much melodramatic for my taste or kept hidden or just vaguely hinted at, so that I struggled as a reader to actually understand their depth and to be interested in the unfolding of the various relationships.
I wasn't so keen on the big final reveal, the events of the last chapters
just felt like too much for me, too over dramatic, too out of nowhere, just too much. The ending itself was also very abrupt.
I really liked the setting and the historical/cultural background but the story, the characters and the writing style quite dampened my enjoyment of the book.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, and Cancer
biblioghoul's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy
henrylee1202's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death, Gore, Rape, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: War
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, and Vomit
Minor: Cancer, Rape, and Suicidal thoughts
zombiezami's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Cancer, Drug use, Infidelity, Vomit, Kidnapping, and Fire/Fire injury
Starvationfrancestea's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Violence, Police brutality, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Alcoholism and Rape
ree333's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Torture, Violence, and War
Minor: Rape and Suicide