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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Italian review:
DNF
Lo stile di scrittura è orribile e non mi piace come è caratterizzata la protagonista. Il libro si fa chiamare femminista ma lei "non é come le altre ragazze" roba già vista e rivista e non è vero femminismo. La protagonista odio praticamente tutti i personaggi femminili (che sono scritti dall'autrice in modo molto vano e stereotipato). Non è così che si fa il femminismo.
Inoltre il world building è inesistente, non capivo cosa stesse succedendo per la maggior parte del tempo.
Non capisco perché questo libro sia così acclamato, fa veramente schifo.
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English review:
DNF
The writing style is horrendous and I don't like how the protagonist is characterised. The book claims itself as feminist but she is "not like other girls" stuff already seen over and over and that is not real feminism. The protagonist hates basically all other female characters (which are all written by the author in a very stereotypical way, with no real personality). That's not how you do feminism.
Also the world building is nonexistent, I didn't understand what the fuck was going on for most of the time.
I don't get why this book is so acclaimed, it sucks.
DNF
Lo stile di scrittura è orribile e non mi piace come è caratterizzata la protagonista. Il libro si fa chiamare femminista ma lei "non é come le altre ragazze" roba già vista e rivista e non è vero femminismo. La protagonista odio praticamente tutti i personaggi femminili (che sono scritti dall'autrice in modo molto vano e stereotipato). Non è così che si fa il femminismo.
Inoltre il world building è inesistente, non capivo cosa stesse succedendo per la maggior parte del tempo.
Non capisco perché questo libro sia così acclamato, fa veramente schifo.
-------
English review:
DNF
The writing style is horrendous and I don't like how the protagonist is characterised. The book claims itself as feminist but she is "not like other girls" stuff already seen over and over and that is not real feminism. The protagonist hates basically all other female characters (which are all written by the author in a very stereotypical way, with no real personality). That's not how you do feminism.
Also the world building is nonexistent, I didn't understand what the fuck was going on for most of the time.
I don't get why this book is so acclaimed, it sucks.
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
sad
fast-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
Holy fuck this book THIS BOOK this insane beautiful book had me at every turn. I DEVOURED THIS. I love every inclination of it. I need an R18 rewrite. I need it all.
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved the first 100ish pages of this book so strongly. Really thought it was going to be a 5 star read.
I fell in love with the FMC at the beginning - she was fierce and came without the typical ‘lazy’ weaknesses I’ve found in many books recently. Her character really challenges what it is to be a woman in a culture like hers, in a non-apologetic way.
Where I think this book fell down was that it was trying to cover too many important, sensitive topics. I found that it was jumping from one topic to the next, leaving little room for the sci-fi or even romance element to fully develop. There was a decent amount of sci-fi in the first and last 100 pages, but the 200 pages in the middle felt like it was over-tackling ‘shameful’ topics, which whilst important, got quite repetitive.
I loved both MMCs, both being a highlight of the book for me. The romance development felt realistic and I enjoyed this part of the plot. It felt quite shy at times and I really loved this aspect as it felt natural.
I fell in love with the FMC at the beginning - she was fierce and came without the typical ‘lazy’ weaknesses I’ve found in many books recently. Her character really challenges what it is to be a woman in a culture like hers, in a non-apologetic way.
Where I think this book fell down was that it was trying to cover too many important, sensitive topics. I found that it was jumping from one topic to the next, leaving little room for the sci-fi or even romance element to fully develop. There was a decent amount of sci-fi in the first and last 100 pages, but the 200 pages in the middle felt like it was over-tackling ‘shameful’ topics, which whilst important, got quite repetitive.
I loved both MMCs, both being a highlight of the book for me. The romance development felt realistic and I enjoyed this part of the plot. It felt quite shy at times and I really loved this aspect as it felt natural.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
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
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, War
What i liked: unique concept of Pacific Rim meets ATLA meets ancient China, Chinese cultural and historical references, non-binary/bi/poly representation, morally gray characters, lot of really good zingers. Loved that Xiran subverted the tired YA trope of the love triangle. Action packed pretty much all the way through. I couldn’t put it down once things picked up after Zetian was in her first battle, and I loved all the Chinese mythological references.
What I disliked: magic/tech in the world not explained very well (would have been hard for me to picture some elements had I not already been somewhat familiar with some of the Chinese cultural elements), no pinyin accent marks on the characters’ names (nit-picky, but still), Zetian being a feminist but not explained how she developed those views, the ending was really weird??? (Aliens?). Also would have liked to see her show more conflicted feelings towards her family (esp her mom and grandma) instead of squashing them all at the end. I was half-expecting her to show more compassion towards her mom and grandma at least after learning that they too were products of a misogynistic system, but nope.
What I disliked: magic/tech in the world not explained very well (would have been hard for me to picture some elements had I not already been somewhat familiar with some of the Chinese cultural elements), no pinyin accent marks on the characters’ names (nit-picky, but still), Zetian being a feminist but not explained how she developed those views, the ending was really weird??? (Aliens?). Also would have liked to see her show more conflicted feelings towards her family (esp her mom and grandma) instead of squashing them all at the end. I was half-expecting her to show more compassion towards her mom and grandma at least after learning that they too were products of a misogynistic system, but nope.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated