jennalwiegand 's review for:

Babel by R.F. Kuang
4.0
adventurous challenging dark emotional slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No
This book grabbed my heart and stomped it on the ground.  Because I had a hard time getting into the book initially, it was slow going, and I wasn't sure how I was initially going to feel. But I was really intrigued by the character and really wanted to see everything through. This book has a massive build-up, and then shit hits the fan pretty dang quickly in the last hundred or so pages.
From the moment Robin kills his dad, to the end I went from having my white privilege called out, and the story of a group of found family kiddos, to rebellion, murder, suicide, explosions etc. The ending felt very much like Rogue One, where basically everyone dies at the end, and I was truly not expecting it.
. The writing is beautiful, I honestly was pulled into the world when I was reading it, and even felt myself googling things in the book to see if they were real places. This truly read like a biography of a magic group, versus historical fiction with a dash of magic, and I really appreciated all of the aspects it gave in that regard. I honestly just wish it was faster-paced, and I would have liked it a lot more! This book did an amazing job of making me think, and actually forcing me to take my time to digest everything on the page. 
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