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4.67 AVERAGE
4.67 AVERAGE
I really appreciate this novel for its bones, but vastly prefer the storytelling of the cdrama adaptation. The novel ending does feel more right to me in terms of how it ends for Lin Shu, so I'm glad I read it all the way to the end! I also liked how much more quiet the final showdown was, how the shadow of Tainainai's death continues to loom over Lin Shu, and for how Lin Shu smiles at the end .
I'm a bit sad that the drama lost some of Liyang's backstory, and Yujin's more obvious deftness (his scenes carried the first volume for me too, as it was otherwise very slow), but their opaqueness in the drama made them interesting, still.
Overall, a good read (with lots of really, really great lines and details), but not one I would have read without being familiar with the cdrama first.
I'm a bit sad that the drama lost some of Liyang's backstory, and Yujin's more obvious deftness (his scenes carried the first volume for me too, as it was otherwise very slow), but their opaqueness in the drama made them interesting, still.
Overall, a good read (with lots of really, really great lines and details), but not one I would have read without being familiar with the cdrama first.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Genocide, Terminal illness
Minor: Rape
That's gotta be the longest book I've ever read, and it felt even longer doing it in a book club. Overall, I appreciated that the book version got rid of a lot of the scenes that I thought were a bit silly in the show and felt like they were just added for the drama (turns out they were!). On the other hand, this is way more closely focused on Mei Changsu himself and so that means you have to sign up to 1000 pages of men doing politics and very little time with women doing things. That's a hard sell for me, and I got through it by skimming through the sections that were exactly the same as the show. Overall, the show and book are very similar, with the book being a more reasonable story in terms of character choices. However, I don't know that I would care as much about the character choices without the acting from the show, so I would still prefer the show over the book. Finally, having said all that about the book being more reasonable, I thought it was very funny that the super abrupt shift in the ending of the show is beat for beat the same as the last chapter of the book. Seems like somone was just fucking done writing and was going to end it ASAP.
Being a hardcore historical fiction fan, Nirvana In Fire (the official English name of 琅琊榜) has set the bar unforgivably high (at least within the circle of Chinese dynasty-themed novels) with its adept use of literary devices and historical settings.
With a timeline stretched across multiple decades, the book started off by narrating the arrival of a sickly-yet-charismatic young man (Mei Chang Shu / Su Zhe) into the city. As his encounters with the royal family and political figures grew, the reader was gradually given glimpses into his background; ultimately revealing his inextricably linked past with the royal family.
Having read this book (split into 3 volumes) in my teens, 琅琊榜 holds a special place in my heart. It is one of the select few that I will revisit every so and then (and probably will pass down as a heirloom to my children lols).
With a timeline stretched across multiple decades, the book started off by narrating the arrival of a sickly-yet-charismatic young man (Mei Chang Shu / Su Zhe) into the city. As his encounters with the royal family and political figures grew, the reader was gradually given glimpses into his background; ultimately revealing his inextricably linked past with the royal family.
Having read this book (split into 3 volumes) in my teens, 琅琊榜 holds a special place in my heart. It is one of the select few that I will revisit every so and then (and probably will pass down as a heirloom to my children lols).
WOW... I need some alone time now. I am done reading this but am not ready to leave these memorable characters yet. I know I will be reliving this book by watching and reading favorite parts of this in coming days. This just hit differently.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
hoooooo boy
This was not what I expected.
First, the requisite caveats. I read this in translation, and not an official translation at that. There were inconsistencies and liberties taken by the noble fan translators and to them, I doff my hat. Thank you for your service. For this reason, I cannot fairly critique the technical language elements of this text (grammar, phrasing, etc) as it can always and forever be chalked up to translation issues. I agree to this, albeit grumblingly.
Second, I watched 琅琊榜 the television drama before reading the book, as many do. I am biased in this respect. No frosty Prince Jing on the page can compare to Wang Kai's cow eyes and angsty pining, and that trouble lies in the medium. As such, book and drama cannot be compared apples to grapefruits. I agree to this also.
Third, I understand that I am in the minority by a) disliking this book, against fandom consensus; b) approaching it with a critical reading lens as opposed to a fandom lens; and c) not being part of its target audience. I understand all of that, and, for my part, will refrain from commenting on any cultural or historical elements.
So what can I critique fairly?
- I don't know how Hai Yan wrote this book (chapterly or all at once), but I do know that it was serialized upon publication to jjwxc (?). I could not help but notice that it... felt like it? As in, foreshadowing was scant, there was a lot of characters explaining things that are relevant to the plot EXACTLY WHEN THEY BECOME RELEVANT TO THE PLOT, and of course the classic "this character did x thing, unaware that Y THING was quickly approaching"
- LYB has an extensive and colorful cast of characters that (last I checked) numbers in the 30s or 40s. There's a lot going on. While the drama gave time to each character to explore their thoughts and motivations, the novel simply did not do that. If I did not already have a working framework of the characters and relationships, I don't think I would care about 50% of them.
- The plot lagged at times. Hai Yan attempted to remedy this by speeding up the passage of time to make things happen sooner, but that only made the story feel more disjointed.
- Related, this was written almost in the style of fanfiction. Not quite as indulgent (and certainly not as graphic), but the author easily brushed over world-building details and plot-relevant mechanics in favor of One Tender Moment (TM).
- There were enough loose threads at the end to weave a tapestry. What happens to the side characters? Did anyone die in the war(s)? What happened to Xia Jiang after being captured by Lin Chen? WHERE IS NIHUANG
- Absence of Nihuang throughout most of the story was excellent for shipping purposes but very detrimental to the lady badassery that I came here for.
- Coming back to the Xia Jiang issue, the ending really felt weak without him, the old bastard. It was a disappointment not to see him get his just deserts. And if we retrace our steps with Xia Jiang, there is only a trail of dissatisfaction (It's a Wonderful Life style): because Xia Jiang never charged into the throne room to denounce Prince Jing and Mei Changsu, all of the tension leaked out of their final victory. Because Xia Jiang never did anything sneaky and worrisome after going into hiding, the falling action was bland. Because book!Xia Jiang was too dumb to figure out Mei Changsu's identity, the slow-turn reveal became infinitely less angsty (listen, Jingyan finding out in the middle of court, in front of Xia Jiang, in front of the Emperor, without being able to express anything or confront anyone /ahem/ is SUCH a better reveal than the little "oopsidaisy someone said something they shouldn't have over tea" that we pulled in the book). Because we never did the courtroom confrontation, we never got to have that conversation between Lin Shu and the Emperor, which is arguably one of the most moving and emotional parts of the story ("the son knows not the father, the father knows not the son" just... didn't happen).
- Prince Yu's arc was never resolved. Also, he has no motivations for rebelling in the book outside of blind ambition because the entire Hua situation was non-existent.
- Prince Qi's shadow did not fall quite as far in the book. That's fine, whatever, but it changes the resonance of the story. While he is the axis around which the entire drama turns, he's just sort of. Out there in the book. Mentioned a couple of times. Forgotten.
- Other weaknesses that were later remedied in the drama include the easy resolution to the Xuanjing Bureau poison scare, the absence of Lin Chen at the beginning, and the minimization of the female characters
I could go on, but listing these critiques tires me. I understand, truly, that this book was kind of a rough draft. Hai Yan greatly improved upon the story when she worked as a screenwriter for the drama, and all of her genius was funneled into something spectacular and devastating. It is one of the best things I have ever watched, and I don't think I will ever get over it. But if I judge this book on its own merits, as a book, I cannot help but feel baffled that the series often called "the best c-drama of all time" came from such a humble beginning.
This was not what I expected.
First, the requisite caveats. I read this in translation, and not an official translation at that. There were inconsistencies and liberties taken by the noble fan translators and to them, I doff my hat. Thank you for your service. For this reason, I cannot fairly critique the technical language elements of this text (grammar, phrasing, etc) as it can always and forever be chalked up to translation issues. I agree to this, albeit grumblingly.
Second, I watched 琅琊榜 the television drama before reading the book, as many do. I am biased in this respect. No frosty Prince Jing on the page can compare to Wang Kai's cow eyes and angsty pining, and that trouble lies in the medium. As such, book and drama cannot be compared apples to grapefruits. I agree to this also.
Third, I understand that I am in the minority by a) disliking this book, against fandom consensus; b) approaching it with a critical reading lens as opposed to a fandom lens; and c) not being part of its target audience. I understand all of that, and, for my part, will refrain from commenting on any cultural or historical elements.
So what can I critique fairly?
- I don't know how Hai Yan wrote this book (chapterly or all at once), but I do know that it was serialized upon publication to jjwxc (?). I could not help but notice that it... felt like it? As in, foreshadowing was scant, there was a lot of characters explaining things that are relevant to the plot EXACTLY WHEN THEY BECOME RELEVANT TO THE PLOT, and of course the classic "this character did x thing, unaware that Y THING was quickly approaching"
- LYB has an extensive and colorful cast of characters that (last I checked) numbers in the 30s or 40s. There's a lot going on. While the drama gave time to each character to explore their thoughts and motivations, the novel simply did not do that. If I did not already have a working framework of the characters and relationships, I don't think I would care about 50% of them.
- The plot lagged at times. Hai Yan attempted to remedy this by speeding up the passage of time to make things happen sooner, but that only made the story feel more disjointed.
- Related, this was written almost in the style of fanfiction. Not quite as indulgent (and certainly not as graphic), but the author easily brushed over world-building details and plot-relevant mechanics in favor of One Tender Moment (TM).
- There were enough loose threads at the end to weave a tapestry. What happens to the side characters? Did anyone die in the war(s)? What happened to Xia Jiang after being captured by Lin Chen? WHERE IS NIHUANG
- Absence of Nihuang throughout most of the story was excellent for shipping purposes but very detrimental to the lady badassery that I came here for.
- Coming back to the Xia Jiang issue, the ending really felt weak without him, the old bastard. It was a disappointment not to see him get his just deserts. And if we retrace our steps with Xia Jiang, there is only a trail of dissatisfaction (It's a Wonderful Life style): because Xia Jiang never charged into the throne room to denounce Prince Jing and Mei Changsu, all of the tension leaked out of their final victory. Because Xia Jiang never did anything sneaky and worrisome after going into hiding, the falling action was bland. Because book!Xia Jiang was too dumb to figure out Mei Changsu's identity, the slow-turn reveal became infinitely less angsty (listen, Jingyan finding out in the middle of court, in front of Xia Jiang, in front of the Emperor, without being able to express anything or confront anyone /ahem/ is SUCH a better reveal than the little "oopsidaisy someone said something they shouldn't have over tea" that we pulled in the book). Because we never did the courtroom confrontation, we never got to have that conversation between Lin Shu and the Emperor, which is arguably one of the most moving and emotional parts of the story ("the son knows not the father, the father knows not the son" just... didn't happen).
- Prince Yu's arc was never resolved. Also, he has no motivations for rebelling in the book outside of blind ambition because the entire Hua situation was non-existent.
- Prince Qi's shadow did not fall quite as far in the book. That's fine, whatever, but it changes the resonance of the story. While he is the axis around which the entire drama turns, he's just sort of. Out there in the book. Mentioned a couple of times. Forgotten.
- Other weaknesses that were later remedied in the drama include the easy resolution to the Xuanjing Bureau poison scare, the absence of Lin Chen at the beginning, and the minimization of the female characters
I could go on, but listing these critiques tires me. I understand, truly, that this book was kind of a rough draft. Hai Yan greatly improved upon the story when she worked as a screenwriter for the drama, and all of her genius was funneled into something spectacular and devastating. It is one of the best things I have ever watched, and I don't think I will ever get over it. But if I judge this book on its own merits, as a book, I cannot help but feel baffled that the series often called "the best c-drama of all time" came from such a humble beginning.
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
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