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evitak's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Well, this is MXTX's least popular one, but I would still argue it's not bad, and it's pretty self aware of its flaws as well. This particular version was not amazing, because fan translations always include the understandable mistakes here and there, but I'm not including that at all in the score (though if you're reading this before reading the book, go grab the official release instead!).
I really liked all the characters, the story was interesting, I really appreciated its humor and the tone shifts never bothered me even if it goes from really sad to really funny to really sad very fast at times. I feel like that's more of a feature in the book rather than a flaw. There were many characters I truly thought I would hate, but by the end of the book I really liked them, and one of them ended up being my absolute favorite character in it. It does a really good job showing the many different sides of the characters, and why they do what they do, regardless of whether or not they are justified.This is especially but not exclusively the case with original Shen Qingqiu, who is the original villain of the book, who does some really, truly messed up things, but then when you find out more about him it's just... Not necessarily difficult to hate him, but at the very least it makes his actions a lot more understandable than one may originally have thought. His backstory is so heartbreaking, and though I'm sure not everyone views this the same as I do, I feel like in that context, his actions later on in life were pretty much unavoidable, albeit still inexcusable. To me, the fact that the book can make me sympathize to this extent even with its worst characters, as well as how much it develops its characters, is really what makes it as good as I believe it is.
As far as the story goes I have much less to say, it requires a specific level of genre and geek (/anime/internet/whatever else you want to call it honestly) culture knowledge that many may not have, and in that case chances are it won't be as much appreciated. For those who do possess that knowledge however, I believe it's a very fun book that gives the reader a very good reading experience. Though on the surface it looks like a joke-y, funny kind of book, it gets into very dark and serious subjects as it progresses, and for the most part it does treat seriously what needs to be treated so.
It's for sure not for everyone, but I do feel it's often judged too harshly by comparing it to the author's later works, when on its own it's a very fun read, regardless of whether it's your cup of tea or not. On that note, there are some pretty heavy topics in it, and I do feel people need to heed the warnings before reading. I would like to add that contrary to a very frequent misconception, the "uncomfortable" scenes found within it were never really... not meant to be that? You are very much meant to feel uncomfortable at what is happening, because so are the characters in those situations.
I really liked all the characters, the story was interesting, I really appreciated its humor and the tone shifts never bothered me even if it goes from really sad to really funny to really sad very fast at times. I feel like that's more of a feature in the book rather than a flaw. There were many characters I truly thought I would hate, but by the end of the book I really liked them, and one of them ended up being my absolute favorite character in it. It does a really good job showing the many different sides of the characters, and why they do what they do, regardless of whether or not they are justified.
As far as the story goes I have much less to say, it requires a specific level of genre and geek (/anime/internet/whatever else you want to call it honestly) culture knowledge that many may not have, and in that case chances are it won't be as much appreciated. For those who do possess that knowledge however, I believe it's a very fun book that gives the reader a very good reading experience. Though on the surface it looks like a joke-y, funny kind of book, it gets into very dark and serious subjects as it progresses, and for the most part it does treat seriously what needs to be treated so.
It's for sure not for everyone, but I do feel it's often judged too harshly by comparing it to the author's later works, when on its own it's a very fun read, regardless of whether it's your cup of tea or not. On that note, there are some pretty heavy topics in it, and I do feel people need to heed the warnings before reading. I would like to add that contrary to a very frequent misconception, the "uncomfortable" scenes found within it were never really... not meant to be that? You are very much meant to feel uncomfortable at what is happening, because so are the characters in those situations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Child abuse
Moderate: Physical abuse, Torture, Emotional abuse, Body horror, and Slavery
Minor: Confinement
vael's review
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, and Sexual assault
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Slavery
s_s_kassab's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence
Moderate: Blood, Murder, Death, and Violence
Minor: Body horror, Death of parent, Gore, Slavery, and Torture
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