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thenoboshow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Sexism, Xenophobia, Child death, Classism, Miscarriage, Rape, Pregnancy, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Suicide, Violence, Alcohol, Blood, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, and War
ddnreads'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? It's complicated
5.0
It's always a high fantasy with the most intense family drama and romance. Gut-wrenching beautifully written plot. It's a story of valuing tradition and power, a griefing mother, and undoubtedly angst romance. Women empowerment and community care.
I love it so much. I cried with it. I healed with it. This is awesome end of the story.
Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Rape, War, Fire/Fire injury, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Genocide, Blood, Body horror, and Miscarriage
abirdiebooks's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Potential triggers:
Graphic: Rape, Child death, Gore, Suicide, Miscarriage, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, War, Grief, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Violence, Toxic relationship, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Rape, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Sexism
insomniacsun's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Con il cuore infranto e l'anima in pace, dedico una standing ovation a Wang per la sua capacità di sviluppare i suoi personaggi e i loro rapporti in modo così umano e struggente, senza soffocarli con elementi del worldbuilding tipici dei romanzi epic fantasy, bilanciando con maestria magia e protagonisti accattivanti. Per quanto abbia trovato l'arco narrativo di Takeru un po' più sbrigativo di altri, questo non l'ha reso comunque un personaggio debole, narrativamente parlando.
Per quanto la trama e il suo sviluppo meritino pieni voti, alcune scelte stilistiche mi trattengono dal farlo: la scoperta dei legami di questo libro con una precedente serie ha reso più sensati alcuni miei problemi con la prima parte, quali l'eccessiva esposizione storico-politica in alcuni paragrafi. Suppongo che avrebbero dovuto rappresentare un semplice ripasso o un nuovo POV di una realtà che il lettore aveva già presente, ma da neo-lettrice di questo mondo l'ho trovato un po' ostico.
Prima di tutto il modo di rappresentare più dialetti in una stessa conversazione era troppo limitato: finchè si trattava di un'altra lingua solamente, il corsivo andava più che bene. Il problema è partito nell'ultimo terzo del libro, dove più lingue erano parlate simultaneamente. La presenza di traduttori nella mischia poteva essere usato meglio e avrebbe aiutato l'evitare transliterazioni ripetitive con cui l'autrice ha cercato di risolvere la questione.
Inoltre, ho trovato confusionaria la decisione di non tradurre tutto dal giapponese, che era la lingua considerata principale dal libro: è stata una saggia scelta nei numerosi casi di espressioni e suffissi unici alla lingua, ma mi è rimasto impresso come un semplice conto alla rovescia sia stato semplicemente romanizzato invece che tradotto.
Detto questo, the Sword of Kaigen rimarrà uno di quei libri a cui non smetterò mai di pensare per il livello d'intensità e coinvolgimento che ha saputo mantenere fino alla fine, soprattutto considerando il mio grande debole per i rapporti familiari intriganti.
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Body horror, Suicide, Miscarriage, Grief, Rape, Violence, and War
toni_k's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: War, Grief, Miscarriage, Suicide, Blood, Child death, Death, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, and Rape
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
it's also a phenomenal character study whose main character and her struggles--as a woman, a mother, a lover, a wife--are rarely seen in fiction, let alone in the traditionally male-dominated domain of fantasy. misaki is unto herself, but is also a symbol for countless women even in modern times; her struggles once again remind me of the repressive, stifling, soul-crushing impact of the patriarchy and sexism. and in the greatest reversal of my feelings towards a fictional character, takeru def takes the cake; how wang made me come to like an alpha male--the very paragon of the patriarchy--who i profoundly loathed and wanted to throttle for at least 60% of the book is beyond me. a miraculous feat, rly, and a testament to the author's ability to fully render her characters as complex, multidimensional humans w/ backstory and fears.
now, despite the myriad of the book's awesomeness, my absolute fav thing abt it is how emotionally charged it is w/o ever veering into being overdramatic. the post-battle misaki-mamoru and duel scenes are one-of-a-kind, id never read anything like them, and they tore at me, and i loved it. the last chapter is also a revelation; robin and misaki's relationship--w/ its fraught history and all things unspoken yet known--is bittersweet, w/ the taste of life, w/ the complexity of the world and its reality, and how, despite not being textbook HEA, we can still be ok, to care and to be hopeful. also highly relate to and appreciate the book's msg of not letting regret overtake us, to instead do our best and appreciate everyday bc we can truly never know when it will be our last this is one of my top reads ever; i just cant stop gushing abt this book and it's honestly a crime more ppl havent read it!!!
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, War, Misogyny, Grief, Rape, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Colonisation, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Racial slurs, Racism, and Toxic relationship
genny'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
There were little things that annoyed me. Why keep other "Earth words" like traditional Japanese honorifics but deem our units of time too unbelievable for the setting? I kept consulting the glossary because all the new terms were overwhelming in the beginning, but I did become comfortable enough to rely on context clues eventually. I also got taken aback every time there was a mention of modern technology. It's easy to forget that this isn't set "in the past", Shirojima is just a very traditional village...but that's more of a me problem. I guess I had some sort of bias against visualizing it as a part of the "modern world", even though places like that exist in my own country.
The last chapter was definitely hinting at something more, but I've heard that the Theonite books (taking place in the same setting but with different characters, if I understand correctly) have been discontinued. It may be a strange ending for some, but I'm glad that the Matsudas' story wraps up with a sense of peace.
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Sexism, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Racism
Minor: Homophobia