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candizluv4books's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
riley_rose's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
jennysjw's review against another edition
4.0
Quieter and more simple/straight-forward writing style than the previous installments. Sometimes, I felt the story exploration lacked depth, but overall, loved the themes. Emotionally powerful for a novella.
estruch's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Death
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I really liked this, honestly wish it was longer so that it could explore its ideas better than the short novella length. It’s a good exploration of grief- for the dead you knew, for the past versions of people you knew even if they are alive, for how situation can be more complicated than you’d like them to be.
Overall very solid.
Overall very solid.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Death
Moderate: Animal death and Transphobia
kamharellano's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
So far, I've loved every single installment of Nghi Vo's The Singing Hills Cycle, but I think I may have found my favorite and highest rated one since the first novella! 😍
After three years spent traveling and collecting stories (see The Empress of Salt and Fortune, When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain, and Into the Riverlands) Cleric Chih has finally come home to the Singing Hills Abbey. But what's meant to be a simple visit home becomes something more when Chih discovers their childhood mentor has passed away and there is a conflict about the burial and final rites of the body.
This way this novella handles grief is absolutely exquisite. Of course, we're shown the indescribable pain of losing a beloved member of your family. Although I've become quite fond of Chih throughout this series, I think they've never appeared as fragilely and beautifully human as they did in this book. But beyond that, Mammoths at the Gates also portrays different kinds of grief: the sadness that comes with returning home and realizing how much it—and you—have changed, and the melancholy of realizing and acknowledging the distance that often grows between old friends.
But the subtler—but no less incredible—beauty of Mammoths at the Gates is how it clearly shows us the moments of joy that still exist between grief. New relationships. New opportunities. New life. Death and grief are the fires that clears the fields when it's time for new planting, allowing further growth to flourish.
(Also, this one delves a little bit deeper into the origin and lore of the neixin. So if Almost Brilliant and her kin have fascinated you since the beginning, definitely pick up this book!)
After three years spent traveling and collecting stories (see The Empress of Salt and Fortune, When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain, and Into the Riverlands) Cleric Chih has finally come home to the Singing Hills Abbey. But what's meant to be a simple visit home becomes something more when Chih discovers their childhood mentor has passed away and there is a conflict about the burial and final rites of the body.
This way this novella handles grief is absolutely exquisite. Of course, we're shown the indescribable pain of losing a beloved member of your family. Although I've become quite fond of Chih throughout this series, I think they've never appeared as fragilely and beautifully human as they did in this book. But beyond that, Mammoths at the Gates also portrays different kinds of grief: the sadness that comes with returning home and realizing how much it—and you—have changed, and the melancholy of realizing and acknowledging the distance that often grows between old friends.
But the subtler—but no less incredible—beauty of Mammoths at the Gates is how it clearly shows us the moments of joy that still exist between grief. New relationships. New opportunities. New life. Death and grief are the fires that clears the fields when it's time for new planting, allowing further growth to flourish.
(Also, this one delves a little bit deeper into the origin and lore of the neixin. So if Almost Brilliant and her kin have fascinated you since the beginning, definitely pick up this book!)
omnipresent_photon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0