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A review by kimwritesstuff
To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods by Molly X. Chang
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think if you like The Poppy Wars or Shatter Me, you'll like To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods. This book definitely lives in the morally grey and depicts Ruying as a character who is really stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Before Ruying was born, Romans from another world ripped a portal in the sky and invaded her world. Even though Ruying's people have magic, the Romans have science and weapons. For decades, Rome has kept their boot on the neck of her world and kept her people down by flooding the streets with opium. When Ruying is coerced into being an assassin by one of Rome's princes, she finds herself in a difficult position. She uses her powers to kill for Prince Antony and begins to believe some of his lies, that he is the lesser evil and really wants peace.
There were things I liked about this book and several things I almost hated. Let's talk about the good. I thought the brutal reality of colonization was wonderfully done, and I loved the alternate history of Rome not only being a superpower but powerful enough to punch holes in worlds. Oh, and I loved Antony as a character; he very easily represents a White Savior. Even when Ruying tries to object or show the evil of his actions, he always defends his actions with "the greater good" because he never really sees her people or world as anything more than resources. He's the most realistic type of villain.
Now what I didn't love, first, I thought the characters were all a little thin. Even Ruying as our main character didn't feel fleshed out enough for me. It wasn't until the last 25% of the book that I got a real sense of any motivation for any of the characters (beyond Ruying wanting to save her family). I thought it would have been interesting if Ruying would have been using her position of power to learn more about her own gift, but instead she just murders and relaxes, I guess. It's like she doesn't want to help herself. The writing was also incredibly repetitive. The same turn of phrase was used over and over.
I would be interested in the next book to see if the characters and writing get better. This was a quick read with an interesting plot; it just needed more oomph.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Before Ruying was born, Romans from another world ripped a portal in the sky and invaded her world. Even though Ruying's people have magic, the Romans have science and weapons. For decades, Rome has kept their boot on the neck of her world and kept her people down by flooding the streets with opium. When Ruying is coerced into being an assassin by one of Rome's princes, she finds herself in a difficult position. She uses her powers to kill for Prince Antony and begins to believe some of his lies, that he is the lesser evil and really wants peace.
There were things I liked about this book and several things I almost hated. Let's talk about the good. I thought the brutal reality of colonization was wonderfully done, and I loved the alternate history of Rome not only being a superpower but powerful enough to punch holes in worlds. Oh, and I loved Antony as a character; he very easily represents a White Savior. Even when Ruying tries to object or show the evil of his actions, he always defends his actions with "the greater good" because he never really sees her people or world as anything more than resources. He's the most realistic type of villain.
Now what I didn't love, first, I thought the characters were all a little thin. Even Ruying as our main character didn't feel fleshed out enough for me. It wasn't until the last 25% of the book that I got a real sense of any motivation for any of the characters (beyond Ruying wanting to save her family). I thought it would have been interesting if Ruying would have been using her position of power to learn more about her own gift, but instead she just murders and relaxes, I guess. It's like she doesn't want to help herself. The writing was also incredibly repetitive. The same turn of phrase was used over and over.
I would be interested in the next book to see if the characters and writing get better. This was a quick read with an interesting plot; it just needed more oomph.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Violence, Blood, and Torture
Moderate: Child death and Child abuse