Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

69 reviews

linneak's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Child abuse, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Rape, Toxic friendship, Violence, Drug use, Medical trauma, Torture, War, Addiction, Colonisation, Self harm, Blood, Classism, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Grief, Abortion, and Gun violence

Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Suicidal thoughts

moonystar's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Drug use, Genocide, Grief, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Death, Drug abuse, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Self harm, Sexism, Blood, Body horror, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, Racism, Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Slavery, War, Sexual assault, Trafficking, and Violence

Moderate: Abortion

euclids_5th's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

• 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? Yes

5.0

I’m writing this review minutes after I finished the book. This review is written without having read the third book, and will evaluate the book not as a standalone novel, but as a text that functions as the second piece of a trilogy.

Second books in any series have the very difficult task of keeping the reader interested, especially after a well done first book (like the Poppy War). Especially in trilogies, they don’t have the excitement of beginning the story or the satisfaction of ending it. In my experience, most second books fail to deliver. The pacing is off, or it’s a shaky transition, or they re-open questions that were already answered.

The Dragon Republic is not like that. Kuang performs a seamless transition from one book to the next, making it almost difficult to believe that it’s a separate text. She maintains a consistently captivating narrative flow, one that kept my heart thudding the entire way through. Y’all I finished this book in the span of 12 hours. At the same time, Kuang manages to gracefully pivot to different thematic inquiries, interrogating different sides of the topics she discussed in the first book while simultaneously introducing new ones.

Read this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Addiction, Animal death, Death, Violence, Vomit, War, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Xenophobia, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Alcohol, Chronic illness, and Classism

hailsatan's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Deportation, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Classism, Confinement, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Child death, Gun violence, Incest, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Gore, Grief, Ableism, Abortion, Alcohol, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Cursing, Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Forced institutionalization, and Gaslighting

bananapie123's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Self harm, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, War, Child abuse, Violence, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Animal death, Blood, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Slavery

praaliine's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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? Yes

5.0

miss kuang has done it again. this book was darker and more tragic than the first. when i thought i knew something, turns out i didn’t. this book really explored the tragedies of war and fighting the wrong enemy. also, r.f kuang ripped out my figurative heart and stomped on it repeatedly…pain…
A fantastic read, as expected.
P.S. watch out for chapter 28 (graphic SA towards the end of the chapter)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Classism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Violence, War, Physical abuse, Rape, Vomit, Addiction, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Murder, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Colonisation, Gaslighting, and Animal death

tinyjude's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I'm emotionally and mentally exhausted lol what a ride. Some parts felt a bit too slow and made me feel disappointed with the treatment of the Cike overall in this book. The trauma exploration and Rin's journey through anger, grief, admiration, obsession and hunger (for blood) are the highlights of the book. The worldbuilding again is incredible, although I want to know much more about shamanism (maybe in the 3rd book pls???).

Also the huge and constant roasting to white colonizers. Get them!! I am with Rin all the way down through her desire to burn everything down.

Venka, Kitay and Ramsa, my beloveds.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, War, Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Rape, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Death, Gun violence, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Sexual assault, Torture, Child death, Colonisation, and Slavery

Moderate: Abortion

stefy27's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Rape, Torture, Violence, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, War, Physical abuse, Racism, Classism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Animal death, Colonisation, and Emotional abuse

kirstendo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, and Gore

ianreadsbookssometimes's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• 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? Yes

5.0

RF Kuang needs to stop hurting my heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Sexual violence, War, Xenophobia, Confinement, Drug use, Racism, Religious bigotry, Murder, Physical abuse, Drug abuse, Grief, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Abortion, Death, Rape, Self harm, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Medical content, Child abuse, and Torture