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trizk's review
reflective
fast-paced
- 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? Yes
4.25
"I felt so very old. At less than twenty-five, before everything that came after, I had no idea how long life was."
Listened to this on audiobook while annotating on my Kindle off and on and the writing blew me away. It's so poetic and beautiful. The way the story is told reminded me of a studio Ghibli film, meaning if you want a fast story WITH action, it will not be here. The author takes their time to tell this story, and it was hard for my neurodivergent ass, but it was well worth it.Because that ending??? Okayyy...bc why no one told me this shit was lowkey sad asf
The audiobook narrator, Cindy Kay, did a very good job of bringing this story to life. Their voice was very soothing and suited the story. It truly captured the feeling of being told a story by someone;in this case, by rabbit especially. I definitely would come back to just relisten to the audiobook for a relaxing time, or if I couldn't sleep.
Listened to this on audiobook while annotating on my Kindle off and on and the writing blew me away. It's so poetic and beautiful. The way the story is told reminded me of a studio Ghibli film, meaning if you want a fast story WITH action, it will not be here. The author takes their time to tell this story, and it was hard for my neurodivergent ass, but it was well worth it.
The audiobook narrator, Cindy Kay, did a very good job of bringing this story to life. Their voice was very soothing and suited the story. It truly captured the feeling of being told a story by someone;
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Death, and Xenophobia
Minor: War, Suicide, and Pregnancy
__codex's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Rape, Suicide, Classism, Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Death, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Violence, Grief, War, and Xenophobia
wardenred's review
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
Do you understand?
Such a beautifully crafted story! Reading it was like solving an intricate puzzle. There are all these layers here: the story of the exiled empress who conquered the empire through a long, clever game; her former servant girl, now an old woman, telling that story; and the cleric recording it. For such a short book, there are so many characters and narrative threads—and then there are also the gaps between those threads. The details Rabbit isn’t sharing. The nuance Chih isn’t fully grasping. The things In-yo kept to herself. The gaps are just as important as the threads for the experience, I found.
In a way, I feel like this book is a tribute to storytelling and history. It is very much about facts, what happened and why and to what end, and while multiple characters have their moments to subtly shine, for the most part characters feel like vehicles for the plot/history to unfold. They hurt, they grieve, they love, they yearn, and they still feel like game pieces on the board, or parts of a puzzle slotting together, or maybe like real life people from ages ago on a history book page: you know they were as human as you, but in the succinct account of world-shaping events, they feel more like forces of nature or links in a chain.
I’m not sure how much sense I’m making here trying to put these impressions into words, tbh, but this was truly an interesting experience. I usually gravitate toward character-driven fiction that delves deep into everyone’s heads. Here, I was getting to know the characters through events and causal connections, interspersed with short poignant moments that revealed some feelings and motivations more clearly at moments, only to leave many parts of the bigger picture up to interpretation.
I was also deeply moved by the lyrical writing style that perfectly conjured the impressions of duty, loyalty, and coldly calculated rage. I loved Almost Brilliant, Chih’s bird companion. And I really want to know more about the Singing Hills. I really hope the next novellas in this series are just as good and can’t wait to get to them, though I’ll definitely need some palate cleansers between these books to let all the impressions settle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Pregnancy, Confinement, and Death
ash_tree57's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? No
5.0
This is easily one of the best pieces of media I have ever consumed. Hands down. I will never shut up about this book
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, War, Violence, and Pregnancy
kell_xavi's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical trauma, War, Colonisation, and Murder
Minor: Pregnancy
hannahhmh's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy, Infertility, and Grief
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Confinement, and Misogyny
Moderate: Grief, War, and Pregnancy
Minor: Infertility, Suicide, and Murder
starduststyx's review
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Beautifully written and packed in a lot of world building for such a short read. I'm looking forward to look at more of Nghi Vo's work because this was a great read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Sexism, and War
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Bullying
library_gremlin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder, Suicide, and Pregnancy
devynreadsnovels's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, War, Sexism, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Death, Confinement, Violence, Classism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, and Misogyny