rnbhargava's reviews
421 reviews

Fire Force Omnibus 3 (Vol. 7-9) by Atsushi Ohkubo

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.25

This volume kicks the action up quite a bit. The connections between characters are really solidifying. The new characters brought in are great, complete with their own unique emotional backstories. I like that there’s still so much for us to be suspicious of even characters that are likeable. The worldbuilding remains very strong. I just keep liking it more and more. You just gotta give into a lot of the pseudoscience in their firefighting techniques too. It leads to some inventive fights.
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Fire Force Omnibus 2 (Vol. 4-6) by Atsushi Ohkubo

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed Omnibus 2 of Fire Force, we get a lot more world building and character additions but it still feels like we’re just scratching the surface. We meet members of other Fire Force Squads and how they relate to our main characters. We also learn about what forces play upon each of them. The storylines and cliffhangers in this volume kept me on the edge of my seat. Same drawbacks from the first omnibus are still evident in this second omnibus volume. Those being things like distracting “fan service” and certain characters acting illogically just because that’s their archetype’s function. Overall though, still loving this series 
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Fire Force Omnibus 1 (Vol. 1-3) by Atsushi Ohkubo

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I quite liked volume 1 omnibus of Fire Force. The characters are quite fun but are mostly united by different fire related tragedies. The mystery of the infernals is a strong hook. The worldbuilding with the structure of the different Fire Force Squads complete with parent organizations with diverging intents is quite unique. Then, the ways that each Fire Force member’s individual intentions for joining the ranks of this profession is informed by their histories is well done. The art is stunning. I’ve got the next two omnibus volumes already lined up. Will definitely continue onward. 
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The Burning God by R.F. Kuang

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing 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? Yes

4.5

The Poppy War Trilogy caps off in amazing fashion. I hear what others have griped about with this last instalment. However, I loved reading through the further corruption of Rin as the war comes to a climax, where she gets huge victories and crushing literal and moral defeats. Rin gradually losing herself and so many senses of trust and belonging anywhere while persevering through this gruelling conflict is mesmerizing. Also, the way it wraps up definitely must have torn a chasm in readers of the books. Does she make that choice for herself or is it another instance of a female character choosing something to ultimately progress male characters that may not deserve it.

The Dragon Republic was a minor misstep but overall I would give the series a 4-4.5. I actually believe I’ll revisit this book series in the future. R.F. Kuang has a space in my heart as an author to watch. Good thing I already got Babel and Yellowface already for whenever I choose to read them. 
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Tista, Vol. 1 by Tatsuya Endo

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.0

This book is a lot of fun. It’s interesting in that it’s a work by the creator of Spy x Family immediately before it. The protagonist is in a way like a composite of Yor & Loid but also Tatsuya Endo liberally riffs on street level Marvel characters like The Punisher, Daredevil and Spider-Man in quite engaging ways. You can tell he loves those marvel characters he riffs on. I was super engaged but at the same time I kind of understood why it was short lived. I think some probably just didn’t vibe with the mixed tone. I love it.
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The Drowning Faith by R.F. Kuang

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

These Nezha narrated shorts placed in key moments between Rin & Nezha are kind of heartwarming and heartbreaking simultaneously. We know she’s feeling so much for him. We know what he feels obligated by family and greater politics to do to her. I kind of wish each of these could have been interspersed throughout where they happen in the novels
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Tokyo Revengers (Omnibus) Vol. 9-10 by Ken Wakui

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.25

This is a quite strong start to this arc about taking down the Black Dragons. I like that it’s so far more personal and low key compared to the large gang battles of past arcs. The dark beginning hits quite hard too. I can’t wait for Omnibus 11-12
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How Long 'til Black Future Month?: Stories by N.K. Jemisin

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a wonderful collection of short stories by NK Jemisin. The content is thus varied and so are the triggers. There’s a good amount of Fantasy, Science Fiction, Magical Realism, even supernatural horror in this collection. It’s not perfect. Some of the stories are arguably too short, basically the germ of an introduction or an idea. Some others are perhaps slightly plodding, though I enjoyed quite a few of the stories regardless of length.
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Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, Vol. 9 by Haro Aso

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adventurous funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted relaxing tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Fun volume about the group getting some economic success in the form of  cans. Akira lets success go to his head. Hijinks ensue for everyone. I liked it
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Spy x Family, Vol. 9 by Tatsuya Endo

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing tense fast-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? Yes

4.25

This is a very strong volume. I really only dinged it because of the manner that volumes are ultimately segmented out. The entire elaborate cruise ship plot that took up the last volume gets wrapped up here. It would be so much more impactful if it was all in one volume. The follow up chapters here are all really well done but they’re fun one offs rather than another massive multiparter. At least it brought out some fun new pairings like Franky & Fiona leading a story. I gotta say though that some of the art in this volume is simply among the best of the entire series. Part of me wants to bump this volume up to 5 stars but it’s not actually quite there. It’s still another great volume in this series.
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