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abitbetterbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Sexism, War, Torture, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Medical content, Misogyny, Vomit, Gore, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, and Murder
Minor: Slavery
btwnprintedpgs's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Death, Sexism, War, and Murder
Moderate: Suicide, Bullying, Child death, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit and Torture
heather_harrison's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Desire is the cause of all suffering. All Zhu had ever desired was to live. Now she felt the pure strength of that desire inside her, as inseparable as her breath or qi, and knew she would suffer from it. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the awful magnitude of the suffering that would be required to achieve greatness in the chaotic, violent world outside.”
It's Mulan vibes but with more violence, war and treachery, with an element of fantasy. BUT... also a really interesting exploration of destiny, gender identity and gender fluidity. How refreshing to have complex gender-queer relationships in historical fantasy! The prose is great and even the (spicy) scenes are beautifully written.
I did go into this relatively blind, and didn't know that it reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Parker-Chan takes great effort to build the world, and it does feel deeply rooted in history with many examples of grim reality.
We meet a young girl, a peasant of the famine-stricken Central Plains of China, who was fated for nothing (literally). She adopts her brother's identity after he tragically dies, as he was fated for greatness. She decides to take his name, identity and in turn, his greatness, to survive for herself.
Our main character definitely leans more towards to the anti-hero, and will do anything to survive.
There is a lot of confusion with the pronouns for Zhu's character - as they seem to switch between she/her and he/him depending on the situation. For clarity, I'm going to refer to Zhu as they/them. They are resilient and cunning and you can't help but be enamored. I absolutely adored the part one of this novel - as it centred around Zhu’s survival
As the narrative progresses, Zhu and Ouyang’s fate become entwined.
The pacing was a bit uneven, and I did find it a bit of a slog until I reached the final part of the story, that I did feel like a 'missed' parts of this because some seemingly important things are just skimmed over. To make matters worse, a lot of the important parts of the story take place 'off page' so we don't even get to see them.
I do feel that Parker-Chan does a very good job at not portraying either the Mongols or the Red Turbans as inherently good or bad. There are no morally superior war heroes in this tale, only survival. I am looking forward to the second book being released this year, and closing off the duology.
Graphic: Death, Violence, War, Dysphoria, Ableism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Death of parent, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Child death
TW: extreme hunger/starvation, Graphic depiction of a person burning to deathbibliomania_express's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Toxic friendship, Grief, Genocide, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Torture, Racism, Gore, Xenophobia, War, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Sexism, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, Death, Child death, Body horror, Blood, and Ableism
latida94's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, War, Death, Child abuse, Child death, and Murder
Moderate: Torture and Sexual content
marsh_mall0w's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Child death, War, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, and Misogyny
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Alcohol, Bullying, and Torture
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Death, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Sexism, Murder, Grief, Classism, and Gore
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Torture, Slavery, Sexual content, Child death, Ableism, Racism, and Xenophobia
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, Excrement, Homophobia, Pregnancy, Infidelity, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Cannibalism
alxjasper's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Xenophobia, Murder, Sexism, Torture, and War
Minor: Slavery and Ableism
cmbohn's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Death, and War
Moderate: Sexism, Torture, Death of parent, and Violence
augustar14's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It's difficult for a book this long not to feel slow paced. There was plenty of action that got me through, but it still overall felt a little slow.
I also struggle with the main character and her actions/choices at times. I understand her motivations and that her situation is complex, difficult, and influenced by significantly different cultural beliefs. And, at the same time, it is painful to see her grow into the person she becomes. The parallels with the eunuch general are fascinating, and I do plan to at least try to read to sequel to see where that thread goes. His story and decisions are painful to follow, though, too. Overall, it is a difficult read, one that offers little reward for the suffering and pain it puts the reader through. It is not a happily ever after story.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Death, Infertility, Torture, Blood, Abandonment, Murder, Homophobia, Bullying, Child death, Xenophobia, War, Child abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Body horror, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Sexism, Misogyny, Violence, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Medical content and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Vomit and Excrement