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sarahb919's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Abortion, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual assault, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Misogyny, Addiction, Domestic abuse, War, Sexual violence, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mass/school shootings, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Ableism, Terminal illness, Violence, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Colonisation, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Suicidal thoughts
tumbly_weed's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Grief, War, and Colonisation
Moderate: Pregnancy, Police brutality, Violence, Sexual violence, and Rape
Minor: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Abandonment, and Addiction
heathen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Domestic abuse, War, Violence, Rape, Death, Drug use, Death of parent, Blood, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Animal death, Grief, Pregnancy, Classism, and Sexual content
bookmaddie'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? No
3.5
Graphic: Death, War, Abandonment, Rape, and Violence
Minor: Domestic abuse
ruthjenkins's review against another edition
3.5
When Japanese officials find him, close to death in the snow, the story starts proper, charting the lives of interconnected characters in Japanese-occupied Korea.
That the prologue and first chapter are still so clear in my mind goes to show their quality. But while there were moments of excellent writing, sadly the book is clunky with exposition and does far to much telling instead of showing. Because of this, I never felt connected to the characters, despite ostensibly seeing some of them grow from children to old age. I wish the author had concentrated just on the main protagonists, Jade and JungHo, spending more time in their inner thoughts and following their lives more closely, rather than trying for a more sweeping saga.
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Domestic abuse, Infertility, Suicide, and War
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I did not feel particularly connected to the characters and that made it difficult to be really invested in their storylines (even more so their romantic plots). I actually liked the portrayal of some of the side characters (Luna and Lee Myung-bo for example) much more than the two main ones.
The writing style wasn't bad but it never particularly struck me. The constantly switching POV was a bit frustrating, especially because we got a lot of scenes from characters that I did not care one bit about as a narrator and many other more interesting perspectives were barely explored.
Overall, I was never really completely absorbed in the narration. The ending was quite bleak but I guess it is quite realistic in showing how the more opportunistic people are the ones that will get ahead in life and never get their comeuppance.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Police brutality, War, Violence, Death, Mass/school shootings, Genocide, Sexual content, and Rape
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Classism, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Confinement, Addiction, Abortion, Sexism, Racial slurs, Murder, Torture, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Infidelity
Minor: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Ableism, Cursing, Abandonment, Child abuse, and Infertility
tomoonarmy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Moderate: War and Sexism
Minor: Death of parent, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Gun violence, Colonisation, Classism, Sexual assault, Murder, Misogyny, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Rape, Police brutality, Grief, Addiction, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, and Alcohol
doodeedoda'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Classism, Death, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Abortion
Minor: Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Drug use, Infidelity, and Suicide
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
I did enjoy the focus on the cruelty of Japanese imperialism because it seems a lot of people "in the west" don't know about it. My own motherland was also a victim of the imperialism and colonization so what was described I had already previous knowledge of.
PLEASE LOOK AT CONTENT WARNINGS as this is a historical fiction based on things that truly did happen. Nothing was in too much graphic detail but there are heavy topics within that you should be aware of.
Graphic: War, Infidelity, Racism, Violence, Police brutality, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Abandonment, Classism, Colonisation, and Death
Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Alcohol, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infertility, Torture, and Toxic relationship
jonfivejive'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
5.0
Graphic: Colonisation, War, and Rape
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Domestic abuse and Animal death