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thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
this was a rly good book still, filled w/ the series' signature intricate war strategies, politicking, and complex motivations that culminated in satisfying and sometimes surprising character development, exploring themes of war and power, and adeptly showing that yts are shit, as so are most men (fcking nezha man..).
my major issue, however is w/ the middle chunk: this book's thick and filled w/ events, but part 2 was kinda forgettable somehow, w/ most of the battles blurring into one another. i know that things happened but i still cant recall what exactly. nevertheless, my fav thing abt this book is hands down the relationship between rin and kitay; i'll be ok w/ everything turning to shit as long as kitay's ok. looking forward to seeing how going up against rank yts and snotty aristocrats w/ popular support will turn out for rin and her (sadly now very numerically diminished) gang.
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Racism, Violence, and War
Moderate: Body shaming, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Colonisation
charlereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
violaceae'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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Abandonment
andromeda_1998's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
As the people who read my review of the poppy war will know, I love the character and worldbuilding in this series. R.F. Kuang shows us the brutality of war in a really graphic way. And I believe this is the only way to make people see the history of humankind. A lot of readers have problems with the gruesome depictions of war in this series but this is how war looks like. The most horrendous things have been done in wartime’s and we have to acknowledge the fact that humanity could have been spared a lot of horrors if we would just accept each other. R.F Kuang says it best: “They believe in a singular and all-powerful deity, which means they cannot accept the truth of other gods. And when nations start to believe that other beliefs lead to damnation, violence becomes inevitable.”
Why did I give this amazing book 4 stars instead of five? The start of this book is slow. At around a hundred pages the story picks up but around 300 pages it falls flat and I had to fight till around 500 pages in for the plot to pick up again.
This book could have been better and I feel one of the reasons that this happens is because there isn’t a lot happening between the characters. We don’t really get scenes where they get to know each other. This book focuses on the war talk and the strategy behind fights and sometimes you head just needs a break and some human interaction between characters could do the trick.
I would still recommend this series though! The books are amazing but before you start reading them check the triggerwarnings!
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Miscarriage, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Abortion, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol