Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Lui che annegò il mondo

Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Lui che annegò il mondo by Shelley Parker-Chan

122 reviews

dmteralie's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I felt conflicted about whether I liked the book the whole way but I found it addicting to listen to. This book is dark and sad pretty much the whole way down.

Content Warnings

shibh's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A bittersweet end to the duology. These books look at gender and the human experience of it in a way that has left me feeling exposed and crying. In a good way though.

Content Warnings

tinyflame4's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Content Warnings

laurareads87's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark hopeful medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

My first five star fiction of 2024 is He Who Drowned The World, the sequel to the excellent She Who Became the Sun. Set in mid-1300s China, this book picks up where its predecessor left off (and, helpfully, includes a very brief overview of where the previous book left the main characters). The book follows several characters vying for the imperial throne and, with it, the ability to shape the future in which they all live. The plot moves quickly, but for me the character work is what really shines here; the characters are multi-faceted and complex and the subtleties of their shifting motivations and relationships are extraordinarily well developed. Themes of cisnormativity and heteronormativity - particularly how their ideologies are internalized and wielded by those they most harm - are handled so skillfully; this was an emotional read, and is the kind of queer historical fantasy I want to read.

In comparison, to the first book, the sequel is definitely heavier in tone; I would also say that the fantasy elements figure more prominently. Having read the first book is vital to reading this one.

Content warnings: War, violence, murder, blood, injury detail, ableism, internalized homophobia, sexism/misogyny, death of a child, drowning, suicidal thoughts, self-harm, torture, rape (several instances, in one case described in some detail on-page), animal cruelty & death. This book is not easy reading. It is not the most graphic by any means, but violence is absolutely pervasive throughout and the author's skill means that the content is deeply impactful.

Content Warnings

grace_b_3's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

saphfics's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book really managed to outshine the first book in many ways. From adding new interesting POVs to really diving deep into the themes of gender expectations and gender performance.

It can feel very slow at times but that is because puzzle pieces are moving all the time. I feel like it needed like a couple of pages more at the end because it felt to me that the story stopped very abruptly. However, I think that the ending still does justice to everyone's character arc.

I would warn anyone to really look at the content warnings because it really is dark at times.

Content Warnings

alyballybee's review against another edition

5.0

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

A fantastic conclusion to the duology. Many twists and turns yet the reader is always along for the journey and never left wanting. Each character is uniquely shaped and crafted, serving a purpose in a meaningful, well-thought out cast. You feel what they feel, and while you may not always agree with their choices, the writing offers respect to what has been done and what could have been. An astounding read. Highly recommend.

Content Warnings

spec_tacles's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

After She Who Became The Sun, I knew I would love this, but i’m still shocked by how much. I was just as immersed in this one, despite different perspectives, and the emotional payoff was huge.

This is a 5-star read, no question. If I were Shelley Parker-Chan, I would feel so proud to have created such a dynamic work of art.

Content Warnings