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elotepounder's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
izumimori's review against another edition
I loved the plot, at least at first. Also the worldbuilding. The use of several Japanese-inspired elements, such as terminology, customs and spiritual beings, all with an added fantasy vibe. The premise of a girl whose vitality doesn't fit in with her world's restrictive society, a girl who's swept away by circumstances in a whirlwind of demons and spirits, pulled even further away from the life she had resigned herself to, and given some heavy decisions to make.
What I didn't like, and grew to hate, is the writing. Plot flowed quite nicely. Dialogue was often predictable but neat enough. What ultimately made me give up on the book, though, was the overwhelming frequency of in-your-face remarks on gender inequality, be it through narration itself or the main character's internal dialogue. After a while, it read as a pamphlet.
I'd rather if, after a few initial chapters including relevant descriptions of the book's patriarchal society, the author chose to show us the issues through the plot, not tell us the issues. The examples of sexism that were highlighted by the writing didn't always match the historical culture the book is inspired by either, so for anyone regularly exposed to contemporary feminist discourse, it may feel like the author is going through a talking points checklist.
What I didn't like, and grew to hate, is the writing. Plot flowed quite nicely. Dialogue was often predictable but neat enough. What ultimately made me give up on the book, though, was the overwhelming frequency of in-your-face remarks on gender inequality, be it through narration itself or the main character's internal dialogue. After a while, it read as a pamphlet.
I'd rather if, after a few initial chapters including relevant descriptions of the book's patriarchal society, the author chose to show us the issues through the plot, not tell us the issues. The examples of sexism that were highlighted by the writing didn't always match the historical culture the book is inspired by either, so for anyone regularly exposed to contemporary feminist discourse, it may feel like the author is going through a talking points checklist.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Confinement and Hate crime
mokkekitty's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Body horror
teddie_valetine98's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and War
witcheep's review
The premise/beginning is intriquing, but something keeps bugging me about the world views. The world is openly misogynistic and very prejudiced — and I get that is the point, to show how wrong it is — but the main character getting rejected by everyone she has ever known because of prejudice over her new situation and her previous "shortcomings" in managing to fit a role for a daughter is just too sad. Maybe I'm just not in the mood for this kind of book right now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Violence and Classism
safiewafie's review
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
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? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Animal death, Death, and Transphobia
kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
3.75 rounded up for GR!
it took me a bit to get into this book, but it’s extremely sweet, and very much gives Sophie Hatter vibes. miuko is funny, relatable, and realistically flawed; there were points where I facepalmed at her choices, and I liked that! I was also reminded of over the garden wall a bit? loved that too
I found that some of the “episodes” in muikos journey felt overlong or even unnecessary; the plot is very neatly made, but some of the threads felt like they didn’t need to be there. I also think that the made-up language was… cool at first, but ultimately became tiring and distracted me from the actual story. i really didn’t like how often the author defined a word in the text itself; most of them were easy to pick up via context clues, or didn’t matter enough to need explanation. i think this author had a lot of fun making this language, and it’s excellent, but it bogged down the writing for me. If the explanations had been saved for an authors note or even a silmarillion-esque set of tales to explain the in-universe etymology, I would’ve loved it! extra sentences in a paragraph just to explain the meaning of one word not so much.
all in all, a fun time!
it took me a bit to get into this book, but it’s extremely sweet, and very much gives Sophie Hatter vibes. miuko is funny, relatable, and realistically flawed; there were points where I facepalmed at her choices, and I liked that! I was also reminded of over the garden wall a bit? loved that too
I found that some of the “episodes” in muikos journey felt overlong or even unnecessary; the plot is very neatly made, but some of the threads felt like they didn’t need to be there. I also think that the made-up language was… cool at first, but ultimately became tiring and distracted me from the actual story. i really didn’t like how often the author defined a word in the text itself; most of them were easy to pick up via context clues, or didn’t matter enough to need explanation. i think this author had a lot of fun making this language, and it’s excellent, but it bogged down the writing for me. If the explanations had been saved for an authors note or even a silmarillion-esque set of tales to explain the in-universe etymology, I would’ve loved it! extra sentences in a paragraph just to explain the meaning of one word not so much.
all in all, a fun time!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual harassment, and War
ska1224's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-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
holds miuko holds geiki
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Abandonment
thenovelmaura's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
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
Traci Chee did a masterful job with this Japanese-influenced fantasy that reads like a fairy tale. Miuko was easy to root for and you end up navigating this lore-filled world alongside her (with the help of some cool footnotes) as she struggled against her demon curse. The cast of magical side characters were sometimes helpful, sometimes malicious, but always interesting. And there was a complex inner conflict driving the entire story: would it be better for Miuko to become a powerful demon if the alternative is a life as a powerless girl? I loved this fast-paced journey through Awara and (remember when I was raving about We Are Not Free in 2021?) Chee is an autobuy author for me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Violence
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
puttingwingsonwords's review
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Animal cruelty, Sexual assault, Transphobia, and Injury/Injury detail