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mqabbadbest's reviews
125 reviews

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

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dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

Dune by Frank Herbert

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dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Ashes of Man by Christopher Ruocchio

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dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

By far, my least favourite book of the Sun Eater series. This book should not have been 500+ pages. The material covered here does not warrant close to that. Kingdoms of Death, which suffered pacing issues, should have been condensed and the two should have been made one, as was planned before.

Also, with each book I read of this series, its main flaw is rearing its head out even more. With this series being an autobiography where we already know everything that happened before it happens, has affected my interest in this series.

Content Warnings

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Wow, what an ending. What a latter half to this book. The amount of time I had to choke back tears in those last 40% of the book, is incredible. I would give this part an easy 5/5.

Those 40% are what saved this book however as the other part of this book didn't hit or affect me. This part of the book suffers from what Hadrian himself calls "the luxury of foresight". All the trials and tribulations that Hadrian is put through through the first 60% of this book fall flat because we already know Hadrian survives all of them. And seeing a man put through so much horrible shit with no stakes made it quite a boring and exhausting read.

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Queen Amid Ashes by Christopher Ruocchio

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adventurous challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Incredible novella that foreshadows Hadrian's future choices and the philosophy behind them.

I have read this after Demon in White and even though the story happens 5 years or so after Howling Dark, it fit well in my opinion

Content Warnings

Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio

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adventurous emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The Best book of the series so far! The lore and history that we learned about throughout this book was incredible worldbuilding.

The only negative for this book is that the final battle felt too long and stretched out. I feel like it could have been 5 chapters less and the better for it.

Tales of the Sun Eater, Vol. 1 by Christopher Ruocchio

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 18%.

Only read Demons of Arae, that's the only one with Hadrian as a POV.

Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced