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dragongirl271's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Death and Physical abuse
bookthief404'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
4.0
My brain is buzzing with the aftermath of the last few chapters (read all in one sitting at 2am).
Need the sequal ASAP.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Alcohol, and War
mothlord's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, and War
squinnittowinit's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I thought this book did a very good job of immersing the reader in the very real misogyny that Wu Zetian experiences at every turn, but also not wallowing in those feelings. Instead, Zetian fights against the system at every turn and the reader can celebrate with her when she succeeds. Gao Yizhi and Li Shimin are great supporting characters as well, full of their own depth, but without taking away from Zetian's character in any way.
I especially loved how unapologetically bloodthirsty Wu Zetian was, so often the "dangerous woman" main character ends up just being misunderstood, or becomes tamed by love or something, which is just weak character development. Wu Zetian is a dangerous woman, and that never changes.
4.75 stars because some of the most dramatic dialogue moments were just a little too silly for my liking.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
alyssadorn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Everything from Zetian’s backstory to her goals and relationships, her values and realizations, all growing and changing along with her (and our) knowledge of the world as a whole— So. Well. Done. I’m obsessed with her, as well as Lizhi and Shimin. I love that they’re all together and not just each with her separately or any bs like that.
And that ending! And the epilogue!! Every minute of this book was a thrill, and the writing style was so refreshing with its use of juxtaposition to bring Zetian’s sardonic humor to life in a way that made me laugh quite a bit, and I found myself using tabs what felt like every other page to mark intense imagery or pithy statements that drill straight into the heart of poignant truths (usually about gender roles and subjugation stated in a way I still can’t get out of my mind).
For example, the author will pair a list of seemingly smaller domestic moments with a bigger, life-or-death situation in a way that shows the realities of daily life in this world and its cyclical injustices— and how the daily life is not seeing those injustices.
“My mother’s mist-frail voice emerges, trying to calm him down. My brother is laughing. My grandfather has turned the livestream to peak volume. A girl is dying in a Chrysalis in the name of mankind.”
Some moments of that pithy, sardonic wit I loved:
“How am I supposed to sign up for my death if my eyebrows are uneven?”
“I don’t pity you, you dork. I cherish you.”
Or even just the chapter titles, like “the supposed pinnacle of female existence” or “a butterfly that better not be my dead sister”
I will say, the description of the foot binding in the beginning is one of the few moments in any book that have actually made me sick to my stomach, so go gently. Also the way addiction is handled in this book is somewhat problematic.
The pacing and writing style are both phenomenal!
Graphic: Addiction, Violence, and War
Moderate: Death, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual violence and Colonisation
iane_reads'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? No
2.5
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Cursing, Genocide, Mental illness, Xenophobia, Blood, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Biphobia, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Medical content, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and Deportation
oliviathebookwyrm'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
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Murder, and War
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Grief, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
jonwood's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
In general I don't care for reading action scenes, and I found these about giant robots and equally giant aliens somewhat hard to follow (ironic considering my childhood love of Power Rangers, but visuals help).
This book despite being labeled as YA, covers a lot of sensitive topics. The opening introduction/prologue begins with a rather explicit rape allegory. Sexual assault, manipulation, and shame all feature heavy, and an actual rape attempt (not just a metaphor) is very explicitly applied to almost happen at one point. Also, within the first 50 pages, child abuse happens. Due to all of this, this book may be hard for some to read.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Torture, Medical content, Murder, and War
carriepond's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Unfortunately, there were too many things that dampened my reading experience. There was so much telling and not showing in the story and nearly all of the world-building was done through info dumps or convenient asides thrust in right before whatever point was necessary to further the plot. Zhao creates a world so horrible that it is easy to understand Zetian's rage, but honestly, there is no real explanation as to why she is one of the only people in the whole world who isn't blind to the problems of the system-- how did she, a sheltered rural girl whose family had no means for her to access information different than the norms of the crappy society have this fulsome critique of the entire pilot system almost instantly? It would have been a more gratifying reading experience to have her, for example, start out with seeds of doubt and this motivation to avenge her sister and then watch that rage build and build as she learned more about the unjust system at play. Also, the two male characters were just blah, pointless, who cares. And Zetian, despite vehemently critiquing the misogyny of the world she's in really treats every woman with whom she interacts like shit (though I suppose she treats most people like shit), which doesn't feel like an intentional choice because Zetian is never shown reckoning with her own complicity in these sexist, violent systems.
There were some really cool ideas and themes in this book; unfortunately, the execution just didn't work for me. There are so many people with opinions I hold in high regard who really liked this one, so your mileage certainly may vary.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Murder, and War
iwephay'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
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Grief, and Murder