i love asoiaf but it's hard to start rereading atm of course

  • marty_relaxes@discuss.tchncs.de
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    1 year ago

    For Kuang I agree that they are generally enjoyable reads (or rather, exciting or suspenseful, I suppose) but I would strongly hesitate to put them into a recommendation looking for quaint and pleasant.

    Her books go fairly detailed into gore and excesses of violence and sexual abuse, more so for her earlier works. So - good reads but come prepared.

    • wrath-sedan@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      Yes I think Babel is a little lighter on gorey excess than the Poppy Wars (which I haven’t read but my partner has described in detail to me). Which is to be expected for books designed to depict the horrors of colonialism.

      But mainly mentioning it with a content warning since it’s often tossed around as an HP replacement. I think the first half of Babel captures a similar “wonders of magic school” vibe, although with a lot more caveats about how inequitable the entire system is. It does get extremely harrowing by the end so maybe should include a clearer warning in my post.

      • marty_relaxes@discuss.tchncs.de
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        1 year ago

        I think that’s completely fair!

        light spoilers for Babel

        And I also think you hit the nail on the head with both the way it introduces the ‘magical’ world and then pulls the rug out underneath you and protagonist in quite a distressing fashion. Pretty clever actually!