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elliya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Also this book has a sapphic relationship which gets nearly zero page time — except for a full-on FISTING SCENE that occupies half of the couple’s overall page time??? Honestly though it was tender and I was not mad.
Graphic: Ableism, Violence, War, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol and Slavery
Minor: Infidelity
river_jean_sterling'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
3.75
Graphic: Violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Death, Blood, Sexual content, Torture, and War
Moderate: Dysphoria, Homophobia, Grief, Ableism, Alcohol, Bullying, Murder, Toxic friendship, Classism, Cursing, Slavery, Child death, and Death of parent
literatehedgehog'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
4.0
Take the complex conniving of Shogun (with maybe a pinch of the Godfather?), and the military plotting of Ender's Game, and a gloriously queer adult kind of Mulan, and you might get a taste of this sweeping epic.
I wouldn't have minded a character list with the map, but I eventually turned the pages so fast I couldn't forget who was who. If you have to pick up and put down this 400 pager often, it may be harder to keep track of who is where and how they last betrayed that other person.
I'm curious about the second book in this duology, but nervous it will be more court intrigue and sexualized power posturing...
Moderate: Slavery, Homophobia, and Violence
Minor: Torture, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury
dreadspawn'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
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Murder, Sexism, Death of parent, Death, Child death, Sexual content, Gore, Blood, Dysphoria, Misogyny, and Ableism
Minor: Slavery and Animal death
jlchabotte's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Death, Death of parent, Sexual content, Misogyny, Murder, and War
Moderate: Outing, Gore, Slavery, Ableism, Racism, Colonisation, Classism, and Child death
Minor: Animal death and Infertility
leannanecdote'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? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Body shaming, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Mental illness, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Blood, Death, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, War, Bullying, Sexual harassment, Violence, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Toxic friendship, and Ableism
Moderate: Slavery
crystalisreading'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
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, Slavery, Torture, Alcohol, Colonisation, Dysphoria, Sexism, Physical abuse, Racism, Ableism, Child death, Classism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, War, Infertility, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
laguerrelewis'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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Animal death, Abandonment, Child death, Misogyny, Blood, Murder, Violence, Vomit, Colonisation, Medical content, Classism, Excrement, Homophobia, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, and War
moreadsnrambles'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: Violence and War
Moderate: Ableism, Islamophobia, Misogyny, and Slavery
jess_always_reading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
The queer themes added a wonderful complexity to the storylines. Parker-Chan treats the queerness of their characters as an added dimension rather than a heavy-handed all-encompassing character trait. Though there's a place for that too, I really appreciated the way they crafted those parts of the story. It fit well and felt realistic.
The story does depect violence, death, and dark themes but not in a gratuitous way.
10/10 would recommend!
Graphic: Sexism, Blood, Violence, Ableism, Body shaming, Death, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and War
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Grief, Sexual violence, Slavery, Animal death, and Vomit