Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang

165 reviews

meganpbell's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative sad tense medium-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

5.0

The Poppy War trilogy is a masterpiece and a modern classic of both military and grimdark fantasy—and every single book will leave you breathless, punched in the gut, in awe and in pain. Follow Fang Runin from poor scholar to powerful shaman, from war orphan to war criminal, as she takes vengeance on the rulers who’ve abused her, on a war path inspired by the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, and delve into war and trauma, rage and revolution, in detail not only horrific, but historic. I’ll read anything R. F. Kuang writes, even if (and it definitely will) hurts me. Check content warnings before reading this series!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Religious bigotry, Body horror, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Cannibalism, Drug use, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Gore, Death, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Grief, and Colonisation

izzywoo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, War, Genocide, Gore, Racial slurs, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Murder, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Animal death, Grief, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Addiction, Classism, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Self harm

Moderate: Cannibalism

laura_with_a_u's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

• 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

5.0

*cue incoherent screaming then falling silent and staring at a wall silently for an hour*

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Toxic relationship, War, and Violence

Moderate: Religious bigotry

hailstorm3812's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

God forbid a woman do anything (or I suppose god bidden and human decency is forbidding it). Really interesting book but it is just so bleak. I loved Venka and how she developed in this book rather than being used as a trauma prop. It was a really interesting arc for Rin, even if it was horrible to read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, War, Xenophobia, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture

Moderate: Sexual violence, Murder, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Animal death and Animal cruelty

min_grachi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, War, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Hate crime, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Racism, Child death, Chronic illness, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Addiction, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Colonisation, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Blood, Body horror, Religious bigotry, Drug abuse, Misogyny, and Violence

lizziaha's review against another edition

dark

3.75

This final book in the poppy war trilogy tastes bitter. Rin’s ascent into godhood (because that’s what it is ultimately, the making of a legend, something bigger than life) twists her humanity. It’s a logical progression, an examination of how supernatural power twists the wielder’s humanity. The problem is that in her godhood, Rin is alone. Her power, her ambition, her trust and her betrayals, they’ve all warped her. Her superiority separates her, even her closest relationships become strained. She stops seeing people as human. It’s painfully realistic, and hard to read. It’s a point that needs to be made, and it’s sickening because you (the reader) stop seeing these people as human too. I couldn’t feel anything over the many deaths in this book because I was so stuck in Rin’s head. Characters pop in and out of her warpath so quickly that it’s impossible to connect with them, or even see Rin connect with them. Most of the time, she doesn’t even try. It’s horrifying to realize the conclusion that this book is spiraling towards, tighter and tighter until you feel suffocated by the weight of it. Vicious circles, indeed. Rin doesn’t, can’t, come to this conclusion until the end of the book, thinking, “history moved in such vicious circles.” And I’ll admit, it did take me a bit aback to recognize some of the parallels between Rin & co and the Trifecta. It’s a tough book to rate, because the very things that made me dislike it are the things that make it masterful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Religious bigotry, Violence, Blood, Xenophobia, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, Racism, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Abortion and Death of parent

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Xenophobia, War, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Cannibalism, Colonisation, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Genocide, and Torture

Minor: Rape

brynalexa's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

For context, I do not normally read war books and this series did not convince me to. That being said, this book was the most compelling. There was not enough evidence to justify a lot of the decisions the characters made about each other. Part one was more of the same of the last two books: a violent, repetitive drag. Part two was just confusion. 

Part three was very fast paced. 

The ending was satisfying and also infuriating. A story about the horror and hopelessness that colonialism is.  Devastating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Body horror, Cannibalism, Drug use, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Confinement, Death, Racism, Xenophobia, Animal death, Child death, Grief, Hate crime, Pandemic/Epidemic, Toxic friendship, War, Abortion, Addiction, Classism, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Alcohol, Torture, and Violence

skitch41's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Colonisation, and Murder

Minor: Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, and Racism

winterwoodbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful slow-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

The ending was perfect for this amazing series and I loved everything about it.
The character work is immaculate.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Genocide, Murder, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Child death, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Trafficking, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Drug use, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Medical trauma, Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Racism, Self harm, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Colonisation, Deportation, Emotional abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, Vomit, and War