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talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Murder, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Chronic illness, Animal death, Mental illness, Gun violence, Sexual content, Grief, and Confinement
Minor: Cannibalism, Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Vomit
totallyshelfaware's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: Gore, Animal death, and Physical abuse
queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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? No
5.0
5 ⭐ CW: violence, descriptions of blood and gore, cannablism, implied rape, abuse (physical and verbal), sex, swearing
"A demoness is what men call goddesses they cannot control."
The Never-Tilting World by Rin Chupeco is book one in this duology. You all know I loved Chupeco's Bone Witch series, and this one didn't disappoint! I loved it!
17 years ago the world stopped turning and half the planet was plagued by permanent night and permeant sunlight. Goddesses live on either side unknown to each other until forces pull them together in an effort to fix the world.
This was a fun adventure fantasy read! We get a beautifully executed long-lost twin trope paired with a heroes journey type of story for both goddesses. The pov alternates per chapter between Haidee and Arjun and Lan and Odessa. The magic system and dark tear in the world struck me as Shadow and Bone like, but still original.
Lan is a badass with PTSD and has healing powers. I love her sapphic romance with Odessa, although I wasn't a huge fan of her, I preferred her sister, Haidee. Haidee is a machanicka (basically and engineer), super compassionate, and not very good at thinking things through. I loved her slow burn enemies-to-lovers thing she had with Arjun. He is a sand nomad with the power to channel fire and uses a gun attachment in place of his amputated hand.
I don't want to spoil any of the plot, but just know that this is worth a read. We even get sand pirates! Chupeco has also done a great job of addressing mental health issues like PTSD, and encouraging counseling as a means to heal.
Can't wait to read the next one!
"A demoness is what men call goddesses they cannot control."
The Never-Tilting World by Rin Chupeco is book one in this duology. You all know I loved Chupeco's Bone Witch series, and this one didn't disappoint! I loved it!
17 years ago the world stopped turning and half the planet was plagued by permanent night and permeant sunlight. Goddesses live on either side unknown to each other until forces pull them together in an effort to fix the world.
This was a fun adventure fantasy read! We get a beautifully executed long-lost twin trope paired with a heroes journey type of story for both goddesses. The pov alternates per chapter between Haidee and Arjun and Lan and Odessa. The magic system and dark tear in the world struck me as Shadow and Bone like, but still original.
Lan is a badass with PTSD and has healing powers. I love her sapphic romance with Odessa, although I wasn't a huge fan of her, I preferred her sister, Haidee. Haidee is a machanicka (basically and engineer), super compassionate, and not very good at thinking things through. I loved her slow burn enemies-to-lovers thing she had with Arjun. He is a sand nomad with the power to channel fire and uses a gun attachment in place of his amputated hand.
I don't want to spoil any of the plot, but just know that this is worth a read. We even get sand pirates! Chupeco has also done a great job of addressing mental health issues like PTSD, and encouraging counseling as a means to heal.
Can't wait to read the next one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Gore, and Sexual content
Moderate: Cannibalism and Domestic abuse
Minor: Rape
moon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
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? Yes
3.5
i had trouble getting through the first half of the book because the pov changes with every chapter and it broke my flow and concentration every time but after the pacing picked up in the second half, i breezed through it with ease.
the premise is very intriguing and unique, but i have to admit that it took till more than halfway through the book for me to get a decent grasp on the world-building and lore. the logistics of magic and how it worked in their world was so vague and poorly explained that if you ask me right now how gates and patterns are utilised, i would struggle to tell you.
that said, it was very easy for me to grow attached to the main characters. well, most of them. arjun and haidee were my favourite and while i know they're the least angsty/complicated pair of them, i loved how their characters grew and developed as the plot progressed. i also appreciated tian lan's complexity, but odessa on the other hand...it was cool seeing how her inner thoughts and morals gradually devolved as the ritual transformed her, but i feel that her character arc was very hastily concluded with no attention brought to the consequences or implications of her earlier actions. hopefully this will be addressed in the sequel.
the never tilting world is by no means perfect but i enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the sequel.
the premise is very intriguing and unique, but i have to admit that it took till more than halfway through the book for me to get a decent grasp on the world-building and lore. the logistics of magic and how it worked in their world was so vague and poorly explained that if you ask me right now how gates and patterns are utilised, i would struggle to tell you.
that said, it was very easy for me to grow attached to the main characters. well, most of them. arjun and haidee were my favourite and while i know they're the least angsty/complicated pair of them, i loved how their characters grew and developed as the plot progressed. i also appreciated tian lan's complexity, but odessa on the other hand...
the never tilting world is by no means perfect but i enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Animal death, Grief, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
Minor: Cannibalism and Vomit
lesbian main character, chinese lesbian main character, disabled south asian main charactermelaniereadsbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
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? Yes
4.75
I loved this book so much! The plot is so interesting and I absolutely love the world building. Rin does SUCH a good job making these totally immersive worlds with their own lore and details without the feeling of info-dumping! In fact, most of what we know about the world we learn through the eyes of the four pov characters, who are all completely distinct! I love that. It can be really hard to do a good job distinguishing between pov's when there are a lot of them, and I didn't think this book had that problem at all!
I was definitely surprised by a lot of what happened but in a completely good way! I loved the characters and their relationships. This book was great and I can't wait for the sequel!
I was definitely surprised by a lot of what happened but in a completely good way! I loved the characters and their relationships. This book was great and I can't wait for the sequel!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Gore, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Sexual content, Chronic illness, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual assault
booksthatburn's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
THE NEVER TILTING WORLD is a journey fantasy told by four sides as two separated sisters and their companions travel to the rift at the heart of their world to try and fix their parents' mistakes.
I like the world building, so much is shaped by the central conceit that something went wrong a decade and a half ago and the planet stopped spinning. I would like to know how gravity is still functioning, but other than that it has an internal logic that was pretty easy to follow. I like the magic system, there's enough information for it to make sense but it's not overexplained. I love this premise, and I love how it's carried out. The price of the gifts was a nice touch, the effects begin subtly and then cause a dramatic turn in the plot, making it clear both why anyone ever would have thought accepting them was fine, and how (from my perspective, at least) it's not worth it.
The four main characters all felt very distinct from each other, with different things they wanted, and many differences in what they were willing to give up and what they sought to protect. They had four very different backgrounds and it's shown well. I felt like I had room to like the book without liking all four main characters. I loved one, liked two, and have complex thoughts about the last one. That character undergoes a gradual change in mental state, it’s very well written. It’s marked by certain milestones, specific plot events that cause it to progress. It wasn’t until several of them it happened that I realized the shift they have been building, but when I looked back I could see its early stages. I love stories where a character undergoes a drastic change in how they perceive the world and interact with it, and this did a great job of portraying that shift. I liked how they were written, and my complex feelings come from initially loving them, feeling strange as their personality shifted to be wholly unlikeable, then realizing that it was shifting due to events in the story. At that point I didn't resume liking them as a person, but I love how they're written. I like the pair journeying in the desert the best, their duo was more relatable to me but one of the strengths of this book is that, as I said the main characters are so different that you'll probably like at least one of them, and the narrative doesn't hinge on whether you like all four of them as people.
The ending was good, it does make me want to read part two, and given that this is a duology the second half of the story is waiting in the sequel. It felt a little abrupt, but the characters both literally and emotionally arrived at a place that made sense as the ending before the next book. Sometimes duologies can feel like two intertwined stand-alone books, and sometimes they feel like a larger work split in two. This is very much that second type, I don't know if my impression will change once I read the sequel.
I like the world building, so much is shaped by the central conceit that something went wrong a decade and a half ago and the planet stopped spinning. I would like to know how gravity is still functioning, but other than that it has an internal logic that was pretty easy to follow. I like the magic system, there's enough information for it to make sense but it's not overexplained. I love this premise, and I love how it's carried out. The price of the gifts was a nice touch, the effects begin subtly and then cause a dramatic turn in the plot, making it clear both why anyone ever would have thought accepting them was fine, and how (from my perspective, at least) it's not worth it.
The four main characters all felt very distinct from each other, with different things they wanted, and many differences in what they were willing to give up and what they sought to protect. They had four very different backgrounds and it's shown well. I felt like I had room to like the book without liking all four main characters. I loved one, liked two, and have complex thoughts about the last one. That character undergoes a gradual change in mental state, it’s very well written. It’s marked by certain milestones, specific plot events that cause it to progress. It wasn’t until several of them it happened that I realized the shift they have been building, but when I looked back I could see its early stages. I love stories where a character undergoes a drastic change in how they perceive the world and interact with it, and this did a great job of portraying that shift. I liked how they were written, and my complex feelings come from initially loving them, feeling strange as their personality shifted to be wholly unlikeable, then realizing that it was shifting due to events in the story. At that point I didn't resume liking them as a person, but I love how they're written. I like the pair journeying in the desert the best, their duo was more relatable to me but one of the strengths of this book is that, as I said the main characters are so different that you'll probably like at least one of them, and the narrative doesn't hinge on whether you like all four of them as people.
The ending was good, it does make me want to read part two, and given that this is a duology the second half of the story is waiting in the sequel. It felt a little abrupt, but the characters both literally and emotionally arrived at a place that made sense as the ending before the next book. Sometimes duologies can feel like two intertwined stand-alone books, and sometimes they feel like a larger work split in two. This is very much that second type, I don't know if my impression will change once I read the sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Vomit
Minor: Cannibalism, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
luckykosmos's review against another edition
adventurous
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
The front half of this book felt a little messy. The magic system, while not the focus, seems more intricate than the time it was given, and more explanation of these gates and their wielders and how that makes this world work would have been appreciated (for example, an air-wielder with a water gate makes ice?). And while I love Chupeco's prose most of the time, other times it could use one more edit, to be slightly less clunky.
But now that the stage is set, I'm in firmly. I loved the final act of this book, the shifting dynamics between Lan, Odessa, Haidee, and Arjun. I'm fascinated to see where this goes next. Where I think Chupeco struggles with heavy exposition, they shine when it comes to complex plotting and intricate character interactions. You can tell they've thought heavily about these characters as chess pieces, and I'm delighted to see what comes next.
(That being said - Salleemae's name felt incredibly distracting and out of place. This is one particular pet peeve, and maybe I'm too quick to think of the student loans company, but of everything in the book, this is what I would change first.)
But now that the stage is set, I'm in firmly. I loved the final act of this book, the shifting dynamics between Lan, Odessa, Haidee, and Arjun. I'm fascinated to see where this goes next. Where I think Chupeco struggles with heavy exposition, they shine when it comes to complex plotting and intricate character interactions. You can tell they've thought heavily about these characters as chess pieces, and I'm delighted to see what comes next.
(That being said - Salleemae's name felt incredibly distracting and out of place. This is one particular pet peeve, and maybe I'm too quick to think of the student loans company, but of everything in the book, this is what I would change first.)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Murder
Minor: Gore, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, and Violence
kait_sixcrowsbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
slow-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? Yes
5.0
Representation:
- MC with PTSD
- Sapphic MCs
- Characters of color
- F/f relationship
Y’all, I don’t know what to say. This is my first Rin Chupeco book, and I am blown away. The characters, their development, and their relationships with the others (both good and bad)? Amazing. The world-building? Phenomenal. The plot? Superb. The way the story was told, with an unreliable narrator and the author giving us just enough information to want more, was equal parts infuriating (in a good way!) and stunning. Seeing everything come together at the end made me wiggle around in my seat as I ate up the last 100 pages.
Be mindful of the trigger/content warnings, and if you’re able to, I would definitely recommend this!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Sexual assault
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