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artstitute's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
That aside — loved it! Martha Wells never misses. I love her sf and I loved this too. Lovable characters as always, and (Bashat/Bashasa notwithstanding) I think she did a commendable job maintaining two timelines while also telling a consistent and not-confusing story. The way that past and present events were linked made the timeline fairly easy to follow without it feeling too much like she was holding the reader's hand.
Graphic: Genocide, Death, and War
Moderate: Blood and Torture
Minor: Body horror and Child death
scifi_rat's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Prose: 4★
Pace: 3.75★
Concept/Execution: 4★/5★
Characters: 4.5★
Worldbuilding: 4★
Ending: 4.25★
Graphic: Death, Violence, War, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Self harm
Moderate: Cursing, Physical abuse, Torture, Colonisation, Grief, Kidnapping, Confinement, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Abandonment, Animal death, and Vomit
atompomb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Violence, Body horror, Murder, and Gore
aprica's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Violence, Body horror, Murder, Genocide, and Gore
Minor: Slavery
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
However... This one is so full of heart with such a unique world that I'm wrestling with the rating. I think it's a little too much, with all its rich cultures and three different magic systems (and all the various Fantasy Words used to describe them), but I can't fault her for having a big and varied world? The danmei influence upon this work is powerful and welcomed. But the actual plot is so thin. "Nothing really happened, but it was beautiful and made me feel a spark of hope" is such a hard thing to assign a number between 1 and 5 to.
Graphic: Colonisation, Torture, War, Xenophobia, Violence, Death, Child death, Murder, Confinement, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Slavery, Grief, Genocide, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Alcohol
marsh_mall0w's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Graphic: Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Religious bigotry, Body horror, Slavery, Xenophobia, Murder, War, Confinement, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Abandonment, and Genocide
ruthlessreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, War, Confinement, Colonisation, Violence, Kidnapping, Genocide, and Death
Moderate: Classism, Child death, Grief, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
clarabooksit'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? No
3.25
Graphic: War, Murder, Death, Body horror, Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Grief, and Classism
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Slavery
saltycoffee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Genocide, Grief, Religious bigotry, War, Colonisation, Classism, Kidnapping, Slavery, Torture, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Confinement, Death, Gore, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Blood
crownoflaurel's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Genocide
Moderate: Murder, Confinement, and Slavery
Minor: Animal cruelty, Body horror, and Child death