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Reviews tagging 'Child death'
Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel) Vol. 1 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
11 reviews
sellalellen's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Mental illness, Child death, Infidelity, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Body horror, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, War, Xenophobia, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Bullying
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
biscuitgale's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This story focuses on a character named Xie Lian who was once a god, turned scrap collector, turned god again. We see him navigate the nuances of godhood and brilliantly solve Scooby Doo-ish mysteries that surface resentment, corruption and further questions. Along the way he meets a mysterious, but handsome character, San Lang. A loving relationship develops between them as they spend time together in a domestic setting and while on an adventure.
I truly enjoyed the slow-burn romance moments in this book, but want to caveat that this story includes dark themes and gore. Like many xianxia stories, there are characters with multiple names and titles. If you’re finding it tough to keep track of the names, I highly recommend keeping track of them and other confusing elements on the side on paper.
This volume does a lot of legwork to set up the world, but it can be a bit confusing if you haven’t read other stories of this genre. It introduces us to heaven, some cultivation and ghosts. The different realms mentioned are truly intriguing. The characters in this story are so fun and chaotic. Not all are fully developed, but they are definitely written with unique personalities and motivations. The pacing of this book can be challenging at times as there are scenes that go on for a bit longer than anticipated. But then there are moments where it picks up and it’s hard to put the book down because I just had to know what happens next. The story leaves us with a ton of loose threads going into the rest of the series!
Here are a few of the darker topics that came up in the story (behind a spoiler tag):
Moral Grayness, Genocide, Empires, Death, Body Horror, Desecrating Bodies, Casual Misogyny, Violence in General
I truly enjoyed the slow-burn romance moments in this book, but want to caveat that this story includes dark themes and gore. Like many xianxia stories, there are characters with multiple names and titles. If you’re finding it tough to keep track of the names, I highly recommend keeping track of them and other confusing elements on the side on paper.
This volume does a lot of legwork to set up the world, but it can be a bit confusing if you haven’t read other stories of this genre. It introduces us to heaven, some cultivation and ghosts. The different realms mentioned are truly intriguing. The characters in this story are so fun and chaotic. Not all are fully developed, but they are definitely written with unique personalities and motivations. The pacing of this book can be challenging at times as there are scenes that go on for a bit longer than anticipated. But then there are moments where it picks up and it’s hard to put the book down because I just had to know what happens next. The story leaves us with a ton of loose threads going into the rest of the series!
Here are a few of the darker topics that came up in the story (behind a spoiler tag):
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gore, Body horror, and Violence
Moderate: Torture, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Transphobia, Classism, Misogyny, Sexism, and Genocide
suicana's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
This might just be my new favourite series. I don't even know anymore how often I've read/watched the first 1-2 novels in (almost) all its available formats - many, many times. Xie Lian is, without any doubt, my favourite protagonist of all time. He's funny, clever, down-to-Earth, competent, and so many things more. And: He's one of the few immortal protagonists I've met where I can believe without a doubt that yes, he really is centuries old and not just another teen with an absurdly high age for ~flAvoUr~.
The plot starts kind of slow and appears disjointed, but I promise it will all fall into place in later novels and all of the characters are reoccurring. It just takes a long time (hence the small star deduction).
Side note: The glossary at the end of the Seven Seas edition is a godsend for Western readers, but I promise all the names and concept also get easier fairly quickly.
The plot starts kind of slow and appears disjointed, but I promise it will all fall into place in later novels and all of the characters are reoccurring. It just takes a long time (hence the small star deduction).
Side note: The glossary at the end of the Seven Seas edition is a godsend for Western readers, but I promise all the names and concept also get easier fairly quickly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, War, Xenophobia, Racism, Blood, Cursing, and Genocide
Minor: Bullying and Child death
grandr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gore, Death, Murder, Violence, Body horror, and Blood
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Infidelity, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Sexual assault
dottiewankenobi's review
adventurous
funny
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- 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
4.75
I was intrigued from the very first page. Going in, all I really knew was that this was about gods, so the characters themselves (their personalities, their humor, San Lang's... everything) were super super fun to explore. The dynamics between Xie Lian and all of the other characters are diverse and lend to a lot of funny or interesting moments (for instance, I love thinking about what Fu Yao thinks of him and why he reacts the way he does sometimes). I also really appreciate the way MXTX tied So Many Pieces together from all the different characters/backstories/etc. The only thing that tripped me up was how some moments felt like they were in fast forward mode, sometimes skipping a few hours and at one point skipping over months.
Really strong start to the series, and I am very excited to keep reading and learn more.
Really strong start to the series, and I am very excited to keep reading and learn more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Gore, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Ableism, Cursing, and War
squinnittowinit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Heaven Official's Blessing Vol. 1 is hilarious, witty, and thoughtful all at the same time. Xiè Lián is a wonderful main character, a kind soul who truly sees the best in people and wants to help them, but at the same time he isn't naive or sheltered. He is a calm and centered presence in the crazy situations he finds himself in.
The biggest difficulty a reader might have with this book is how many names some of the characters have, as many of them are immortal gods who have gained names over time. Keeping a paper nearby to make a character log or keeping the Heaven Official's Blessing wiki pulled up (but beware spoilers) as you read may be helpful.
Another thing to note is this is a translation from Chinese. In order to more closely capture the meanings of the original text, this version is not quite written in the 'literary English prose' style that English readers may be used to, but it is grammatically correct and overall quite understandable.
The biggest difficulty a reader might have with this book is how many names some of the characters have, as many of them are immortal gods who have gained names over time. Keeping a paper nearby to make a character log or keeping the Heaven Official's Blessing wiki pulled up (but beware spoilers) as you read may be helpful.
Another thing to note is this is a translation from Chinese. In order to more closely capture the meanings of the original text, this version is not quite written in the 'literary English prose' style that English readers may be used to, but it is grammatically correct and overall quite understandable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Gore, Body horror, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Transphobia, Cannibalism, Suicide, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Mental illness, Self harm, and Confinement
Minor: Sexism, Grief, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Body shaming, and Misogyny
vigil's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
it was cute. which is the only emotion i'm really feeling coming out of this. i read it really quickly, the story is blunt and uncomplex, the characters are engaging enough for me to keep turning the page, the prose is plain and easily understood, if not rather bland and awkward, etc etc. there's nothing quite wrong with this first volume, but there's not too much right with it either.
it is the first volume in the series and it's aggressively obvious. the entire volume is set up. setting up the world, the characters, the plot, everything is just beginning. if we began in a place where the main couple is already or soon to be established, this would be the flashback b-plot. the actual plot itself is a bit akin to taking two video game side quests, and making them your main story: plot events that are meant to serve your characters and the world their in, not necessarily further the narrative (though in this case i do suspect there will be callbacks and tie-ins later on, hence the flashback b-plot comparison) or to be the most engaging by itself. this did get a bit irritating in the banyue arc, which dragged on for longer than it needed to.
the characters are engaging enough, but everything in this series seems to move glacially, so we learn them better much slower than you'd might like, if at all. we have an messy outline of xie lian by the end, but by no means the full picture. san langaka hua cheng is still largely a mystery. the side characters are present, but not especially noteworthy.
this is probably the mxtx work with the most misogynistic undertones (at least in this volume) with the crazy overbearing jealous scorned woman trope, who takes her anger at a man out on other woman, and the near constant description of nearly every woman of prominence as ugly, which is especially noteworthy because there isn't many of them.
i have checked out the next two volumes from my library and i will be continuing with the series, but my first impression of tgcf so far is that it's aggressively fine. it's a slow burn in everything, character, plot, relationships, and unfortunately, this first volume was a spark that didn't really lead anywhere. i could tell you what happened, but outside of the relationship inception and further development, not much did so it'd be pretty useless. i don't think they chose a bad place to cut off per se, but that the start of the web novel so far is more concerned with set up, exposition, and info-dump, and didn't bother to leave room for much else. i'm aware things will get meatier later on, but for right now, it has nothing to really go against or for it.
as is standard with mxtx translations by seven seas, translation issues abound. they are not as present or severe as the ones in mdzs, but they have not disappeared.
overall, i'd say if you already like mxtx, go for it, but if you're a newcomer to her or danmei in general, pick up something else. tgcf is longer than the bible and the first volume doesn't give you much incentive to continue with the rest of it, because it has very little meat to it, and relies on established tropes of the genre.
it is the first volume in the series and it's aggressively obvious. the entire volume is set up. setting up the world, the characters, the plot, everything is just beginning. if we began in a place where the main couple is already or soon to be established, this would be the flashback b-plot. the actual plot itself is a bit akin to taking two video game side quests, and making them your main story: plot events that are meant to serve your characters and the world their in, not necessarily further the narrative (though in this case i do suspect there will be callbacks and tie-ins later on, hence the flashback b-plot comparison) or to be the most engaging by itself. this did get a bit irritating in the banyue arc, which dragged on for longer than it needed to.
the characters are engaging enough, but everything in this series seems to move glacially, so we learn them better much slower than you'd might like, if at all. we have an messy outline of xie lian by the end, but by no means the full picture. san lang
this is probably the mxtx work with the most misogynistic undertones (at least in this volume) with the crazy overbearing jealous scorned woman trope, who takes her anger at a man out on other woman, and the near constant description of nearly every woman of prominence as ugly, which is especially noteworthy because there isn't many of them.
i have checked out the next two volumes from my library and i will be continuing with the series, but my first impression of tgcf so far is that it's aggressively fine. it's a slow burn in everything, character, plot, relationships, and unfortunately, this first volume was a spark that didn't really lead anywhere. i could tell you what happened, but outside of the relationship inception and further development, not much did so it'd be pretty useless. i don't think they chose a bad place to cut off per se, but that the start of the web novel so far is more concerned with set up, exposition, and info-dump, and didn't bother to leave room for much else. i'm aware things will get meatier later on, but for right now, it has nothing to really go against or for it.
as is standard with mxtx translations by seven seas, translation issues abound. they are not as present or severe as the ones in mdzs, but they have not disappeared.
overall, i'd say if you already like mxtx, go for it, but if you're a newcomer to her or danmei in general, pick up something else. tgcf is longer than the bible and the first volume doesn't give you much incentive to continue with the rest of it, because it has very little meat to it, and relies on established tropes of the genre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Violence, and War
fireswatch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Body horror, Gore, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Genocide, Child death, and War
Minor: Cursing and Fire/Fire injury
teagstime's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.5
I read some of the TGCF unofficial tl (p much just the contents of this volume), and already loved the story as it was... The translation team rly did a great job here bc this tl breathes so much life into it! It feels like a brand new story! ^^
The main characters are absolutely incredible. I found myself endlessly charmed by everything Xie Lian does (´◡`ʃƪ) ! I'm alr a huge fan of San Lang, Fu Yao, & Nan Feng too... Truly couldn't ask for a better group of MCs. The dynamics & hidden feelings... It's all so juicy!! 😩
As for the story... What can I say! It's off to such a great start, with just enough hints to keep me intrigued as to just what Xie Lian's been up to all this time / what awaits him in the future ! Yet also dreading finding out haha...looks directly at the story of General Hua... T_T
I did take off half a star bc I feel like the Banyue arc drags just a bit... But other than that, really enjoyed!
As TGCF is the only MXTX novel I didn't get to finish before Seven Seas picked them up, I'm very excited to see where this story goes !
The main characters are absolutely incredible. I found myself endlessly charmed by everything Xie Lian does (´◡`ʃƪ) ! I'm alr a huge fan of San Lang, Fu Yao, & Nan Feng too... Truly couldn't ask for a better group of MCs. The dynamics & hidden feelings... It's all so juicy!! 😩
As for the story... What can I say! It's off to such a great start, with just enough hints to keep me intrigued as to just what Xie Lian's been up to all this time / what awaits him in the future ! Yet also dreading finding out haha...
I did take off half a star bc I feel like the Banyue arc drags just a bit... But other than that, really enjoyed!
As TGCF is the only MXTX novel I didn't get to finish before Seven Seas picked them up, I'm very excited to see where this story goes !
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Body horror
Moderate: Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and War
Minor: Child abuse, Bullying, Child death, and Death of parent
skylarkindareads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Death