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firesnowbell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Minor: Death of parent, Gore, Murder, Sexual assault, Grief, Blood, Death, Rape, and War
sammysamsam'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: Murder, Violence, Racism, Kidnapping, Death, Injury/Injury detail, War, Suicide, Child death, Gore, Torture, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Grief, Gaslighting, and Blood
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Self harm, Medical content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Homophobia
maxgold12's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: War and Death
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, War, and Blood
ladygetslit'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? Yes
3.75
I am not as interested in the political intrigue or the wartime action scenes, although that's a personal preference. Mostly, though, I couldn't get into the writing with this one. The first and second book are both in 1st person present tense the whole time, and we're really immersed in Lei's thoughts and feelings. In the third book, Lei's perspective is mixed with Wren's; on the surface, I love the idea of including Wren's perspective, but the execution fell short for me. Wren's chapters are told in 3rd person and past tense, which really threw me for a loop every time the narrative switched. If they had both been 1st person and the same tense, I think I could've enjoyed Wren's perspective more. As it is, the writing made the book feel more disjointed than it needed to be, even though most of it is taking place with the girls separated and living out their own storylines.
And, finally, I wasn't satisfied with the ending. The second book seemed to imply that there was no good solution to the problems in this world, because when individuals get power, they use it terribly, regardless of intention. This series fell into the trap of well, we need to resolve everything and then spent several chapters walking us through what happens after the resolution so that we know for sure that everything is all fine and dandy.
That being said, I do think this is a fast-paced, action-packed fantasy series that was easy to get sucked into, and it's still worth reading. As a writer, I'm not even sure how I could've resolved the story any better than Ngan did, and I enjoyed getting to spend more time with these wonderful characters.
Graphic: Kidnapping, Misogyny, Violence, Confinement, Death, War, Blood, Gore, and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Physical abuse and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault and Rape
steviewonder'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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Rape, and Self harm
eveilie'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: War, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Lesbophobia
emmaowens'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
3.5
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Physical abuse, Violence, Racism, War, Blood, and Misogyny
Minor: Rape
spellygirl'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: Death, Gore, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Emotional abuse, War, Blood, Confinement, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Classism
prettynerdy3'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Torture, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Gore, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Blood, Genocide, Medical trauma, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Violence, and War
greeneggsandsam'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? N/A
5.0
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Girls of Fate and Fury is the third and final book in the Girls of Paper and Fire series by Natasha Ngan. The series follows two girls who are forced concubines to the Demon King, called Paper Girls, who are involved I the rebellion against the Demon Court's terrible rule.
This book, and the series as a whole, was such a challenging story that took me on an emotional roller coaster. It made me question myself because I loved these deeply flawed characters who made such awful decisions but did so for what they felt were the right reasons. Ngan is not afraid to catapult your heart right out of your chest, and I really didn't know where she was going to take the characters, whether it would be good or bad and to what extent. This is explores more of thr magic in the world than previously developed, which added even more to the intrigue.
I absolutely loved the ride this book took me on. One minute my heart was melting for the romance between characters, and the next I'm biting my nails wondering what could go wrong next for them. The feminist undertones, and LGBTQ representation are very present, and I love how they played into the plot. This is a series I can see myself enjoying again in the future, especially when I'm in need of a good heart wrencher.
Graphic: Self harm, Blood, and War
Moderate: Sexual assault