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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
Rin’s journey to the academy and journey there was really interesting. The ending seemed to fizzle out though.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Tf the last half of this book 😮
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Genocide, War
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Hate crime, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I got about half way with this one and wanted to put my thoughts into writing before my impression of it faded.
I think it is a great shame that the author decided to set their book in a pseudo-historical setting. Most of the book takes place in what is quite clearly a sort of pseudo-China which has been in several wars with what is pseudo-Japan. The last war, the one before the start of the book, involved other nations intervening in the war, which then caused pseudo-Japan to leave pseudo-China. A clearer allegory to the second Sino-Japanese war can not be found in fiction. It is unfortunate because I think the author could've woven a much more interesting story if they weren't so set in mirroring real life events in their fictional world, going so far as to having Sun Tzu be a often quoted sage in this fictional world, which is wildly confusing. In my opinion, you can't do both, it is either or. There is nothing wrong with having your fantasy world being based on real life aspects, but there is a line somewhere between being inspired by and simply copying.
Other than that, which more or less ruined the story for me, I didn't find the characters enthralling, and I found the constant swinging between settings and moods to be jarring. The world in which the characters lived would constantly swing between what can be described as grim dark to idealistic and then right back without missing a beat.
I have seen this book described as a military focused book, and admittedly I only made it halfway before I tapped out, but the parts of the book that involved war and conflict were extremely basic in their description. The book spends time in a military academy and is billeted as being about military and warfare, only for the battles to be described in the most basic of terms.
I wouldn't recommend this book, and having seen other reviews of it I am left wondering what other people see in it, that I don't.
I think it is a great shame that the author decided to set their book in a pseudo-historical setting. Most of the book takes place in what is quite clearly a sort of pseudo-China which has been in several wars with what is pseudo-Japan. The last war, the one before the start of the book, involved other nations intervening in the war, which then caused pseudo-Japan to leave pseudo-China. A clearer allegory to the second Sino-Japanese war can not be found in fiction. It is unfortunate because I think the author could've woven a much more interesting story if they weren't so set in mirroring real life events in their fictional world, going so far as to having Sun Tzu be a often quoted sage in this fictional world, which is wildly confusing. In my opinion, you can't do both, it is either or. There is nothing wrong with having your fantasy world being based on real life aspects, but there is a line somewhere between being inspired by and simply copying.
Other than that, which more or less ruined the story for me, I didn't find the characters enthralling, and I found the constant swinging between settings and moods to be jarring. The world in which the characters lived would constantly swing between what can be described as grim dark to idealistic and then right back without missing a beat.
I have seen this book described as a military focused book, and admittedly I only made it halfway before I tapped out, but the parts of the book that involved war and conflict were extremely basic in their description. The book spends time in a military academy and is billeted as being about military and warfare, only for the battles to be described in the most basic of terms.
I wouldn't recommend this book, and having seen other reviews of it I am left wondering what other people see in it, that I don't.
adventurous
challenging
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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
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
Terrifying and fantastic.