Reviews

Shanghai Immortal by A.Y. Chao

hsaven's review

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3.5

3.5

giulia_hikari's review

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3.0

Il titolo mi interessava parecchio, ma già alle prime pagine avevo paura che non mi sarebbe piaciuto poi tanto. Non tanto per l'irriverenza della protagonista, quanto più per i termini che utilizza (merda, culo, scoregge e tante altre belle cose) che sebbene possano avere senso da lei, non le trovo adatte al contesto in cui si svolge il tutto. Poi anche il fatto che lei sia una mezza vampira occidentale, mi ha lasciato un po' così.

Alla fine ho continuato a leggerlo e quando ho visto che era anche su Audible ho preferito continuare ascoltandolo (esperienza bellissima, la lettrice è stata molto brava).
La storia, anche se catalogata come fantasy, si basa principalmente sul folklore e tradizioni cinesi e gli eventi sono più che altro "slice of life" potremmo dire che fanno avanzare il rapporto tra lady Jing e Mr Lee principalmente, ma anche con i secondari. Questo non mi è dispiaciuto, perché il punto centrale per me era che Lady Jing si sentisse meno sola, però la risoluzione finale l'ho trovata molto sbrigativa e poco emozionante.
Il personaggio di Mr Lee, poi, solo una bella statuina.

Non mi ha fatto impazzire, ma poteva andare peggio

elizabeth_lepore's review

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5


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books_tea_and_fantasy's review against another edition

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1.0

1.5 ⭐️

Characters: 0
Atmosphere: 2
Writing: 2
Plot: 3
Intrigue: 1
Logic: 4
Enjoyment: 1

How is this adult? All the 100 year old protagonist does, is whine like a petulant child.
❌ DNF at 35% (p. 122)
❌ Unhaul

serabooks's review

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adventurous

4.0

observerspotter's review

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emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • 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

3.75

Please use another word than ta-tas for boobs I'm begging there's so many to choose from

emmylouh's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • 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

4.5

bookishexpat's review against another edition

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Hate the MC’s voice  and the writing style in general 

kaziaroo's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I liked the characters and setting, but the writing was repetitive and the plot was poorly stitched together and overly convenient. For someone who is fiercely independent and rebellious, Jing's actions actually had very little effect on the way things turned out; she was just washed about by everyone else's machinations. The romance was cute but a bit too mushy and easy for my tastes and the drama between them felt forced and clichéed. Also, the language felt very childish with words like "piss-fart" being used way too often throughout and it was hard to take Jing seriously as an adult (almost a century old!!) when she constantly sounds like a child. I'm not sure if these are common Chinese sayings which the author decided to translate, but in English at least it came across as silly rather than funny. Overall it was a fun book but it didn't stand out to me.

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vejohnson's review against another edition

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Main character annoying.