themoonwholistens's Reviews (698)

well that was boring

DNF @32%

u know i appreciate the filipino rep but i am quite sick of token Southeast Asian representation. It was mentioned once and then never again, the character didn’t even feel Filipino. If you don’t want to include Filipino characters, then don’t. Stop with this “Representation” baiting. If the only thing you are going to do to make a character “diverse” is mention that they cook pancit and arroz caldo in some past party, I would rather not have it.

that is at least 4 hours of my life i will never be getting back. I was already skeptical because of the amount of people who were disappointed in this book but I was really willing to give it a chance. The magic system sounded interesting in theory but this just read like a modern Vicious by VE Schwab with the college setting and origin of powers/magic but less poetic and obviously lacking the Schwab touch. I had some people saying that it really does have a slow burn plot until around half of the book but honestly the plot was the least of my irritations.

The characters sounded so obnoxious and pretentious. If that was the point, fine. But it doesn’t make the book any more intriguing or interesting. I also don’t like how it felt like they were being objectified based on things such as the clothes they were wearing. I get that it could somehow be a commentary but it just didn’t read that way for me.

I kept cringing from the character relationships. I only read the first 32% and I would have stopped earlier if I didn’t have hope for the magic system. But from the parts I have read, I think that the magic system wasn’t executed in an intriguing manner and the premise was wasted on both an un-interesting execution and annoying characters with even more obnoxious POV narrations.

The only reason this isn’t 1 star is because I didn’t finish it. It represents the hope that the rest of the book got better, I guess.

— 2.0 —
// content warnings: a lot of blood depiction, self harm to get blood because of the magic in this book, very brief mention of cancer, gore, violence, death, murder, child abuse, toxic living situations, depression, grief depiction, panic attacks, anxiety, gun violence, drinking, brief mention of alcoholism, drugging, throwing up, captivity / themes of being forced into places
(taken from Melanie @meltotheany)

Incredibly well discussed and suited my style of non-fiction. For personal reasons, I will be giving it 5 stars. Though I do not agree with some of the arguably transphobic views, I resonated a lot with Lasco’s thought processes or at least where they were coming from. Fellow Filipinos, you need to read this.

“We are who we are because we forget.”

4.5

“I was so absorbed in the things that I couldn’t change, I forgot the most important thing.”

i really love that it highlights the need for closure and how it affects people as human beings in general. I do think you need to be able to relate to the stories to be feel deeply invested and it’s unfortunate that out of the three stories, I was only partly invested in certain very specific scenes. It’s not too heavy and was a welcome side read from my other heartbreaking and intense read. It has the right amount of nostalgic and poignancy that won’t leave you too destroyed.

— 3.5 —
⇢ content warnings// Alzheimer's disease, Car accident, Chronic illness, Death, Pregnancy, Terminal illness

FORMAT READ: eBook (Scribd)
READ FOR: representation and fencing plot
READING LEVEL: Level 1-2 out of 5

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OVERALL THOUGHTS: 4/5

I'm so hooked I think I might just finish this whole series in one go. The ending of this issue has got me fangirling BECAUSE YES THAT'S SWEET AND COOL AND I'M HERE FOR THAT

PLOT: ★★★★☆
WRITING STYLE: ★★★☆☆
ILLUSTRATIONS: ★★★★☆
CHARACTERS: ★★★★☆
THEMES: ★★★★☆
PACING: ★★★★★
PAGE TURNER: ★★★★★

FORMAT READ: eBook (Scribd)
READ FOR: representation and fencing plot
READING LEVEL: Level 1-2 out of 5

⇒ MY BLOG ⇐
*All of my reviews are as spoiler-free as possible unless stated otherwise*

OVERALL THOUGHTS: 4/5

everything is starting to build up and I'm really starting to get into the characters wahoo! <3

PLOT: ★★★★☆
WRITING STYLE: ★★★☆☆
ILLUSTRATIONS: ★★★★☆
CHARACTERS: ★★★★★
THEMES: ★★★★☆
PACING: ★★★★★
PAGE TURNER: ★★★★★

[10/27:20 After nearly a year of thinking: this book was definitely the best for me in the whole series... because we can ignore all the plot holes and lack of build-up in the other two HAHA]

In case you’re wondering about my reaction to the ending: I knew it was going to happen in some way… but I didn't expect to be this affected by it, you know? *me while sniffing and sitting in between buckets of tears*

I am shocked at how much R.F. Kuang grew in the year between TPW and TDR. This is greatly tied to historical events but Kuang was able to create her own world out of it. I really don't know if I can confidently say that this was a story that I highly "enjoyed" the whole time but I was certainly invested and it's a story that needs to be told.

I highly suggest that you should know at least the basics of the history that this is based on (Opium Wars/Sino-Japanese Wars) before diving into the series because you appreciate the messages so much more. You don't need to go in-depth for each of the people involved in case you don't want to be spoiled but at least know what happened... plot wise?

“You gods have no power except what we give you.”

The series in general focuses a lot more on Rin’s journey and the politics of war/military (especially during the opium wars era in china) so if you go into this for the detailed action/battle sequences, you might not be getting as much of that. Besides, what I love about Rin’s character is that she was never made to be this unbeatable force like we see in so many stories that can take down armies all by herself. Matched with being in her head and watching everything unfold based on her decisions made her so much more human and is just another reason I love Kuang’s writing as much as I do.

Rin is extremely unlikeable but well-written characters don't need to be lovable. I loved how her internal struggles were correlated with the phoenix god. It added a supernatural element to sort of hyperbolize those strong feelings and accentuate just how intense her mind flips were. From her dark thoughts you already see how her mindset feels both wrong and human, you get to feel just how torn she is.

I’m pretty sure that every character is morally grey and flawed. I would recommend this series just for how each of the characters are written and portrayed. There may be times when it’s not blatantly obvious until you dissect their decisions and thought spaces, but it’s there. And you won't help but be attached to them in some way.

Spoiler

I want my own Kitay and Venka. Nezha hunny, you have a lot to make up for.

“You taught me the meaning of fear, nothing more.”

It has such a fresh take and perspective on a war-centered fantasy. Which doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a dark story because it portrayed all kinds of brutality and cruelty that you would think a war would bring. When I think about how literal scenes can be interpreted metaphorically, particuarly Rin basically losing her mind, I can’t help but attribute it to how children of real war could be feeling. AND I AM JUST A SAD MESS because at the end of the day, they really are just children at the center of all this chaos.

Internal and external politics between the different groups of characters, makes you wonder who is on the “right” side and if there even is one. You really understand where each of their perspectives are coming from and because this is rooted in history, makes you really think about it a little harder.

All elements of story-telling were so beautifully written and executed, the pacing, the build up, world buidling, character relationships and dynamics, ++ I’m pretty sure I cried at some point just because of how good the writing is.

And it’s absolutely crazy how she weaved the supernatural concepts into the historical constructs... I’m so speechless. Everything just hits harder when you understand the metaphors. The last time this happened to me was when I read the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

I mentioned in my Poppy War review that Rebecca Kuang tended to “tell” rather than “show” but in this book… she SHOWED. She pulled through and I am satisfied.

“Could they be winning? If winning meant killing as many people as they could, then yes.”

↣ There was a time when I thought everyone was exaggerating with how much I would be destroyed by this book but they were right. Read this for all the historical significances that we need more of in literature and one of the best executed ideas I have read. ↢

this took me longer to write than usual because I was a sad potato for the 24 hours post TDR and I had to piece myself together

— overall thoughts: 4.5 —
It’s not a poppy war book if we aren’t starting with the:
⇢ trigger warnings// drug usage, drug abuse, drug addiction, self harm, cannibalism (off screen), rape, massacres, (including children), human experimentation, gore, animal death, mutilation, war, hallucinations, physical abuse, emotional abuse, ableism, abortion (mentioned)

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- beware spoilers ahead for TPW -

at around page 100:

No matter how much I love them, I can’t shake feeling that Nezha and Rin’s relationship sometimes feels cliche to me. There are just too many missing pieces that would have created a proper build up between their characters. I found it weird that when they’re apart, Rin barely even thinks about him? But the moment he’s back in the scenes, it’s like her feelings went up a whole level without the baby steps in between that would make for a proper slow burn. My opinion might change as I go on but I am writing this for the record.

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11/30/20: I have the overwhelming urge to ignore all my responsibilities and binge read this series.

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"For all people care about looting, it doesn't seem to matter when it's museums doing it."

it delivers the discussions you're probably picking this book up for. Such as that on being diaspora and of the stolen art in museums. But I just could not get over how unrealistic it all was haha. Not that every book needs to be realistic but it needs to be believable in the context of the story. I also could never get into to character dynamics but maybe that's on me and i should stop reading YA.

It's still a lot better than a lot of other YA i have read though and it did highlight the themes it wanted, which I really appreciated. Especially the Asian family dynamics, I will always relate to those.

— 3.0 —
⇢ content warnings//

⤜ pre-read review ⤛
hello hello hello it has a cover now <3

bringing attention to this book because heist + college students + asians is my type

not gonna lie i remember next to nothing but not that it was bad, just a little bit forgetable. I'll still read these collections though because they are refreshing and a nice pick-me-up for whoever is reading it.

one of the most reflective books i have ever read about prejudice, solitude, and owning up to your mistakes.

i really do love it when books use "monsters" as metaphors and i see how this book in particular gave birth to more modern pieces of that theme. one of my most anticipated english gothic classics and it served.

“It is true, we shall be monsters, cut off from all the world; but on that account we shall be more attached to one another.”

— 4.25 —
⇢ content warnings// Attempted murder, Child death, Death, Depression, Islamophobia, Murder, Parental abandonment, Xenophobia