Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Four Treasures of the Sky

A tremendous amount of grief written and weaved so beautifully into a work of art. Unlike anything I’ve read before.

A note to read the acknowledgements of this book, if you don’t usually! It adds a layer that is extremely valuable to the experience of the story.

I can’t in good conscience say you will have fun but the writing is worth the pain and heartache. But I was sobbing uncontrollably at the end, so reader, be warned.

Content Warnings

namielle's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.25

This book is really sad, but I thought that it was written well. Daiyu has her flaws, but you root for her to triumph over all of the things that happen to her.

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zozo9's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.75

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superlillative's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-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

The style the book was written in made it easy to read, but the seriousness and emotional depth are still very prominent and conveyed well. Zhang does a great job in developing characters in few words.

As an Asian American, it is sobering to read these accounts as history is meant to learn from, not something that can be cherry picked because someone does not agree or share an opinion.

I know it’s my own personal preference, but I would have enjoyed more historical descriptions of the environment as well, but I understand that this book is meant to focus on the characters.

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martinjen98's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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moodyromancereader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator did a fantastic job. The writing in this is beautiful, filled with rich imagery and symbolism. Please check the content warnings, as this book can be challenging in specific chapters. Nonetheless, I’m glad I could listen to the audiobook. There were a few things I was confused about, which could have been on my end since I was listening to the audiobook. I couldn’t always tell when we were in the present or the past. And as others have mentioned, I’m not sure how Daiyu managed to get away posing as a man for so long. This is a story that I will think about for a long time. It is heartbreaking, horrific, but impactful. My rating for the book is 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4.

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witz25's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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