Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang

2 reviews

athryn's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

2.5

I mostly enjoyed this book, especially the first half. I really found the exploration of languages and translation to be good.

It ultimately ended up a bit stale to me, like the author had a really good grasp of the translation and language stuff, and yet wasn't all that great at actually writing historical fantasy. The characters at Oxford really didn't resonate with me as much as I'd like. The constant modern phrasing in the dialogue just felt off. Don't get me wrong, I love a "fuck the British Empire" and "fuck capitalism" book, but this just ... I dunno. It feels overrated.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Death, Slavery, Gaslighting, Racism, Xenophobia, Colonisation, and Violence

Moderate: Classism, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, War, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Murder, Physical abuse, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Car accident

aseel_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense slow-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

4.0

i really enjoyed the social critique this book had on academia, colonisation, empire, knowledge etc. i actually really like the footnotes, there were not too many of them. it was definitely quite slow in the middle and the big thing that happened, i had been waiting all book for it to happen. i think it had a realistic ending and i like the blend of history and magic that the author managed. i do think i didn't care that much for the characters themselves, just their circumstances. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Slavery, War, Animal death, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Xenophobia