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challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, War
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wow. I read Kuang's Babel first so it's not surprising that the way the book went did go the way it did, but man. It was hard to read at times. Definitely read the content warnings first before this book so you know what you're getting into. It's a sad and emotionally challenging book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Trafficking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Colonisation
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Murder, War
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
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
Possibly the first series where I’ve read one book and then decided not to read any others. It got super depressing, nihilistic and violent — the graphic descriptions towards the end were too much. That’s on me, I didn’t read that it was grimdark, and figured it would be similar to Kuang’s other books. I really liked the first half of the book, before the war and when everyone was at Sinegard and things felt hopeful, but that went downhill quickly. I went from liking Rin to being exasperated with her and then disliking her so much I couldn’t read anymore. BUT, the writing was excellent, story is layered and so so detailed and Kuang really made me feel a bunch of emotions. Avoid if you’re not okay with child abuse, death, extreme violence and gore. Goodbye, going to have nightmares now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really liked the first half of the novel, strong world building and I also love a good training arc. Towards the latter half it started falling more flat? mmm there didn’t seem to be that much character development and the mc seemed to just circle around the same things(probably the point). The action scenes felt more muddled and I felt myself getting lost while reading . But when it picked back up, it was brutal and just wow. Overall was a good read very invested in the storyline and yeah it just gives everybody gone die. But it’s really interesting to see this story playing out history in a world where humans evoke gods and act through them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Blood, Grief, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, Colonisation, War, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This novel has a lot going for it, especially with its Chinese folklore inspired world building. The writing is solid, however, there are a few things that hold it back from being great. The story is engaging from the beggining but some of the characters, like Runin’s adoptive mother and sometimes Jun , come off as more like caricatures, getting caught up in long monologues that feel like they're just there for shock value.
Things take a bit of a downturn once theshaman powers become a bigger focus, especially after Runin drinks the tea and meets the phoenix goddess. There aren't many limitations for these powers and while the idea of insanity as a consequence adds some complexity, beign able to become a god takes away from the stakes of the plot.
There are also moments in the story that don’t really go anywhere. For example, when Runincuts her hair, it seems like a big deal, but it doesn’t really affect her or the plot in the long run. It feels like filler, and it’s never mentioned again.
That said, things really pick up once theCike characters are introduced. They bring a fresh dynamic to the story and make the stakes around the shaman powers feel more real.
In part three, the story dives into more disturbing territory with the massacre of Golyn Niis, the discovery of the mugenese laboratory and the experiences of characters like Venka and Altan. But this also highligths an issue: Runin seems almost illogically untouchable. While other characters suffer horribly, Runin somehow always escapes the worst and it starts to feel like the narrative is protecting her.
The novel also critique the "Us vs. Them" mentality in wartime, but by only showcasing the more sanitized side of the Nikara war while not shying away from describing the grotesque brutality of the Mugen, the message feels somewhat diluted.
Overall, I really liked the book's exploration of power, race, gender and violence, even if the way it handles those ideas sometimes feels uneven. The portrayal of the violence of war and the dehumanization inherent in such conflicts is important and I thought the theme of ancestral rage is really powerful.
Things take a bit of a downturn once the
There are also moments in the story that don’t really go anywhere. For example, when Runin
That said, things really pick up once the
In part three, the story dives into more disturbing territory with the
The novel also critique the "Us vs. Them" mentality in wartime, but by only showcasing the more sanitized side of the Nikara war while not shying away from describing the grotesque brutality of the Mugen, the message feels somewhat diluted.
Overall, I really liked the book's exploration of power, race, gender and violence, even if the way it handles those ideas sometimes feels uneven. The portrayal of the violence of war and the dehumanization inherent in such conflicts is important and I thought the theme of ancestral rage is really powerful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Genocide, Pedophilia, Rape, Torture, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, War
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, War
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Infertility, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book has been on my TBR for over a year, and finally I got my hands on a copy to read and <I> boy </I> was it a read. First of all, the writing! I knew RF Kuang was a phenomenal writer because of <I> Babel </I> and <I> Yellowface </I>, but I wasn’t expecting this. The world was so well thought out, the way the universe magic and supernatural worked so immaculately planned that it didn’t cause my brain to hurt thinking about. Every line felt like it had so much meaning to the rest of the story, painting pictures even without the context.
There were a couple things that immediately caught my attention. First was the way that she used the puppet show to tell the history of the world. The reader leant everything at the same time as Rin, and I think using the puppet show for this was an amazing way to give her (and us) the history without making it some long winded monologue. It also allowed for us to see not only Runin’s reaction, but also that of Kitay. The second piece that had me immediately was the conversation about religion between Jiang and Runin. I don’t have words for how that conversation hit, and how it seemed to encapsulate both sides of the arguments for and against religions.
I’m excited to read the next book in the trilogy, even though I know I’m going to be emotionally destroyed again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Drug use, Genocide, Blood