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quarkie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
What I liked: I thought the concepts of imago machines and a poetry-based political system were fascinating. I wanted to keep reading in order to find out more about the world. The characters were all written to be strong and individual.
What I didn't like: I'm not sure if it's because I wasn't paying close enough attention, but I found the plot to be a bit incoherent at times. I couldn't isolate the precise motivations of each character, as they seemed to be changing over time. Some plot points would come up, and then never come up again, or come up at a point where they no longer really matter since the situation had since changed. Maybe this was on purpose, to reflect the changing political circumstances, but it led to a slightly less-than-satisfying read. The main character kept coming back to two main points (her missing imago machine and her relationship with the Teixcalaani culture) so often that it felt a bit ham-fisted.
Overall, I think it's an interesting concept that could have been executed slightly better. Still a wholly worth-while read.
Graphic: Blood, Suicide, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Violence, Terminal illness, Murder, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, War, and Grief
Minor: Alcohol
existentialhell'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
5.0
Graphic: Self harm, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Racism, War, Medical content, Xenophobia, Murder, Death, Violence, Suicide, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Colonisation
peregrinwho's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Suicide and Xenophobia
Moderate: Colonisation and Violence
Minor: Death, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
malakelgindy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Minor: Suicide
ha1yan'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
4.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gun violence, Murder, and Suicide
Moderate: Xenophobia
madscientistcat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Medical content, and Murder
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Honestly it was fantastic sci-fi regardless of the political machinations- the technology, world building and culture are fully fleshed out and you are able to be swept away as much as Mahit is with the Teixcalaanli empire, but also understand how it is terrible even if it beautiful.
I’ll give it a few days - might be a 5 star from me, but I think it falls just short because it does have some weird issues. One is with pacing in the middle.
Graphic: Xenophobia
Moderate: Violence and Colonisation
Minor: Suicide
Suicide only tagged for a ritual suicide.clarabooksit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Blood, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Murder, and Suicide
Minor: Confinement and War
alisonvh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Terminal illness, Suicide, Gore, War, Medical content, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Police brutality, Murder, Violence, and Classism
moppyy'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
3.5
Graphic: Suicide