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A review by leguminosae
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book has me genuinely thinking with words like “inauspicious” & “felicitous” lmaoo
What a sweet book! Very warm and fuzzy. Great underdog story. It’s also such an interesting one in terms of genre. It’s almost more of a slice of life than a fantasy I would say.
I might sound so dumb saying this right now, but basically if you like all the social and political side plots of historical romance/romantasy, this is a book that’s just those parts, done exceptionally well.
Ending made me cry.
All the friendships in this book probably makes the fujoshi girls go crazy.
I really loved the sort of extra meta level of immersion in the book where in the beginning, you have no idea wtf anyone is talking about. You feel like you’re missing something. (It took me until like halfway through the book to realize that some words I thought were first names were actually titles, kind of like “ms or mrs”, for example.)
Some characters are only briefly mentioned once and then brought up chapters later and just as you’re thinking “ugh who is this? How am I supposed to keep track of who that is? Why are they important again?” the main character has the same thoughts. It’s done in a way that doesn’t make it annoying to read because you’re there in the trenches in over your head with the main character, and you pick up more as you go along, just as he does.
In the beginning the world is opaque and confusing and you only can just barely understand the gist of everything, but by the end you are appreciating the subtle gestures and maneuvers that are happening in court. Pretty cool!
What a sweet book! Very warm and fuzzy. Great underdog story. It’s also such an interesting one in terms of genre. It’s almost more of a slice of life than a fantasy I would say.
I might sound so dumb saying this right now, but basically if you like all the social and political side plots of historical romance/romantasy, this is a book that’s just those parts, done exceptionally well.
Ending made me cry.
All the friendships in this book probably makes the fujoshi girls go crazy.
I really loved the sort of extra meta level of immersion in the book where in the beginning, you have no idea wtf anyone is talking about. You feel like you’re missing something. (It took me until like halfway through the book to realize that some words I thought were first names were actually titles, kind of like “ms or mrs”, for example.)
Some characters are only briefly mentioned once and then brought up chapters later and just as you’re thinking “ugh who is this? How am I supposed to keep track of who that is? Why are they important again?” the main character has the same thoughts. It’s done in a way that doesn’t make it annoying to read because you’re there in the trenches in over your head with the main character, and you pick up more as you go along, just as he does.
In the beginning the world is opaque and confusing and you only can just barely understand the gist of everything, but by the end you are appreciating the subtle gestures and maneuvers that are happening in court. Pretty cool!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Sexual assault, Suicide, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Death of parent
The “suicide” in this book is actually a capital punishment type situation enforced by external systems, but it is self inflicted. This type of execution is referred to briefly throughout the book but we do get to see one and the description is a little gnarly and involves a sword so take that as you will.