Reviews

Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee

mollybeans's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

bisexualwentworth's review against another edition

• 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? Yes

4.0

There's a lot that I love here: the worldbuilding, the magic system, the prose, the women with swords, the mechanical dragon. I think that Yoon Ha Lee accomplished exactly what he set out to do with this book. Unfortunately, I think that the concept is just fundamentally not super compelling for me. The execution is as strong as it could have possibly been, but Jebi just isn't an interesting enough main character for me. I would have loved either a more slice of life story or a more action-packed story, but again, those aren't the books the author wanted to write, and that's okay. I will absolutely be reading his other work cause I think there's a lot of good stuff here. I did wish the book was longer, but I do appreciate a good quick fantasy standalone.

The first and second half of this book are very distinct in terms of vibes and pacing. I preferred the second half, but I think the first half may work better for a lot of readers. Very much a personal taste thing.

Anyway, this book isn't a new favorite, but it did leave a positive impression and I would definitely recommend it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Colonisation, Death, Violence, and Xenophobia

sophia_mt's review against another edition

adventurous funny tense slow-paced

4.75

fruitiebomb's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

riley_rose's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

ren_the_hobbit's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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? Yes

4.5

Really good book with very complex characters. The story takes place in a country that was recently conquered by another. I thought that this was done really well with a lot of depth and moral questions. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

ilsevdhout's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

disniq's review

adventurous reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

skyestorme's review against another edition

3.0

The worldbuilding is fantastic and the characters intriguing, although the book itself could have benefitted from an extra round of edits or rewriting. The pacing was sporadic, there were a number of typos and poorly constructed sentences, and information was often introduced only when it was immediately necessary, with little foreshadowing or buildup. Still, it was a great fantasy story in a very unique setting, and if a sequel is in the works I’ll definitely be picking it up! (Just make sure to go over it a bit more.)

lddecker's review against another edition

adventurous sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0