Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

86 reviews

gracewiley's review

medium-paced

• 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Torture, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Child death, Homophobia, Slavery, Blood, Death of parent, Outing, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

ganseys's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

carochacord's review

dark tense slow-paced

• 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

3.75

So… first things first: this isn’t like the Song of Achilles. Yes, there’s war and queer characters but that’s about it. It isn’t much like Mulan either. There is no family or honor, it’s main theme is will and what I consider self-fullfiled profecies, and Zhu is not merely dressing up as a man. She struggles with her identity and her body throughout the book. I have mixed feelings about it, but it certainly deserves the four stars I’ve given it. I cannot say I enjoyed the dense descriptions of war tactics of the lack of (wholesome) romance, but it was a good read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, and Sexual content

Minor: Slavery and Death of parent

for_esme_with_love's review

adventurous dark 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

4.0

She Who Became the Sun is a captivating story of defying expectations and creating your own destiny - no matter the cost. Amid the brutal backdrop of war during the end of the Yuan Dynasty, there is a fascinating exploration of gender through characters whose experiences are never shoe-horned into 21st century understandings of queerness. It's dark, its witty, its sexy, and its written so beautifully that you will almost be distracted from the moments of stomach-churning violence as these characters stop at nothing to claim their fate. If you love tragic period epics (Song of Achilles) and morally dubious anti-hero/ines this one is for you!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Suicide, and Torture

If you are squeamish about violence, stay away from this book! There is not any sexual violence which is really refreshing for this kind of dark period epic.

lennie_reads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gore, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, and Murder

Minor: Animal death, Child death, Grief, and Cannibalism

theroguerecommender's review

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

I can already say with confidence that She Who Became the Sun will be my favorite book of 2021. Shelley Parker-Chan has pulled off an amazing feat with this novel, which is simultaneously an alternate history of war and empire, and a searing exploration of desire. The story spans several years and follows two protagonists on opposing sides of a brewing war, each just as compelling as the other. Parker-Chan also manages to offer a breathtakingly fresh commentary on gender identity, completely blowing open the boundaries of who a fantasy hero can be. With expertly written prose, She Who Became the Sun is a powerful story of the tension between fate and ambition, both intimate and wide in scope. Fantasy fans will be clamoring to get their hands on the sequel–I know I am! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Sexual content, Violence, and Death of parent

Minor: Ableism and Body horror

Additional CW for loss of a limb