Scan barcode
jjjreads's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Fatphobia, Grief, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Death of parent, Murder, Trafficking, Classism, and Slavery
Moderate: Body shaming, Suicide, Pregnancy, and Colonisation
Minor: War and Violence
rorikae's review
- 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
4.5
Cleric Chi arrives at a recently declassified lake and stumbles upon a woman named Rabbit who lives in a house on the lake's shore. Rabbit invites Chi into her home and begins to tell her story of how she came to live on this lake and her friendship with the woman that would become the Empress of Salt and Fortune. Her story unfolds as Chi catalogs the contents of her house and Rabbit explains how each piece harkens back to her past.
Nghi Vo is such a wonderful writer. Her prose is lush and evocative. Pairing that with a well paced story that unfolds through the items in a house, results in a wonderful novella. We get to learn about Rabbit's past through the items and in the process we get a sense for the people that she once knew. At the same time, Vo utilizes Chi's commentary about the items and how they interact with Rabbit to further flesh out their background as well.
I will be interested to see if the subsequent stories build off of Rabbit's story and the political history of the world or if they will each be their own standalone story as Chi travels. Either way, I can't wait to read what comes next. This is another of the recent Tor novella series that have been some of my favorite things to read.
Moderate: Abandonment, Grief, and Pregnancy
moonytoast's review
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Moderate: War, Death, Violence, and Grief
Minor: Pregnancy
thereaderfriend's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Some fav quotes:
"Accuracy above all things. You will never remember the great if you do not remember the small."
"How do you live with it watching you? .. As you live with anything, I suspect. You bear it, or you end it."
"Time is the thing. I want time to get the words right. To do proper honor to those who died. I don't want them to be ashamed when others speak about them. But I know that there is only so much time left, and it will never be perfect. "
"... if a record cannot be perfect, it should at least be present. Better for it to exist than for it to be perfect and only in your mind."
"Angry mothers raise daughters fierce enough to fight wolves."
Graphic: Confinement, War, and Death
Moderate: Pregnancy and Grief
Minor: Suicide, Infertility, and Murder
cheye13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Misogyny, Abandonment, and Death
Moderate: Murder, Grief, Infertility, Pregnancy, Violence, War, and Medical trauma
Minor: Suicide, Sexual content, and Homophobia
ggcd1981's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Death, Misogyny, Racism, Classism, Grief, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
uranaishi's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Moderate: Death of parent, War, Death, Grief, and Pregnancy
ijustreallyliketrees's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Confinement and Grief
Moderate: Death, Pregnancy, Suicide, War, and Murder
Minor: Medical trauma
larqspur's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Confinement and Death
Moderate: War, Murder, Grief, and Colonisation
Minor: Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, and Infertility
ablaine's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I first listened to this as an audiobook and was immediately lost. A mystical creature, a gender non-binary cleric and a funeral for an empress were too much for my auditory processing to grasp all in the first few seconds. I’m grateful to my friend for encouraging me to pick it up in written form.
Each chapter begins with an inventory of significant objects and reading reveals the historical meaning of each within this imagined political landscape. Reading this while grieving a parent and taking stock of objects and memories made this a sad and reflective experience, but I’m grateful for it.
Thanks for the recommendation, Hannah ❤️
Moderate: Grief, Murder, and War
Minor: Body horror and Sexual content