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booksthatburn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
She was concerned about getting married and it takes someone pointing out how she's isolated herself before she begins trying to build a life and connections in her new home rather than just mourning the unsupervised freedom she had as a child. Once she gets to know them, Kaikeyi loves her husband and his other two wives. Her identity as a mother is central to the second half of her story, and she loves all her sons (though she only bore one of them). The worldbuilding includes detail about Kaikeyi's clothes and surroundings every so often, such as when she chooses a particular sari for significant moments. I prefer stories which don't rely heavily on detailed descriptions of the characters' surroundings, and this was a good level for me.
Kaikeyi's narration includes periodic comments about how she didn't know certain things would make everything turn out so badly. The turn, when it happens, is so close to the end that I was starting to think her warnings would be for nothing. Most of the story is spent showing how she conducted her life and gained influence with the help of the binding plane, and the way she did her best to recover from some early mistakes when she was first learning how this power worked.
I'm not already familiar with the Indian epic this is reimagining, and I didn't need any familiarity in order for this to be a moving story with memorable characters. I enjoyed reading it, and will probably try to read the Ramayana if I can, since it's piqued my interest.
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Grief, Death, War, Sexism, and Misogyny
Moderate: Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Sexual content and Physical abuse
just_one_more_paige's review
- 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? No
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Death, Death of parent, Sexism, Classism, Infertility, Blood, Misogyny, Violence, and War
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy, Bullying, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Domestic abuse
chelsaat's review
- 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: Sexism
Moderate: Violence and War
Minor: Domestic abuse and Emotional abuse
bluejayreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, Abandonment, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Death of parent, War, and Violence
Minor: Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Animal death, Infertility, and Religious bigotry
Forced marriage, sexual content with dubious consent (mentions)kylieqrada'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, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Abandonment, Violence, and War
Minor: Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Infertility
erinmjustice'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: Sexism, Misogyny, and Death
Moderate: Violence, War, and Abandonment
Minor: Infertility, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent
mani'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
4.0
Moderate: Abandonment, War, Violence, Grief, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Sexism, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse
charlereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
4.0
Moderate: Grief, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Death, Gaslighting, Murder, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Infertility, Domestic abuse, Abandonment, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, War, and Bullying
anxiousnachos's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Anyway if you read either Circe or The Witch’s Heart, definitely pick this up.
OH and the protagonist is aroace!! And it’s woven in really well.
Content warnings: misogyny, sexism, like so much, men being complete shits, neglect, domestic abuse, war, murder, manipulation/control
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, War, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse
random19379's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Xenophobia, Misogyny, Abandonment, Abortion, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Murder, Kidnapping, Blood, Death of parent, Violence, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and War