Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

13 reviews

butterflyinabook's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • 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

After having N.K. Jemisin's books recommended to me multiple times, I was thrilled when my book club chose The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms as our next read. I was not disappointed—this book was both unique and deeply intriguing. While it’s definitely a slow-burn, I found myself fully engaged in the world Jemisin built. The blend of gods, demigods, and mortals creates a fascinating backdrop for the story, and I loved following Yeine, the protagonist, as she navigates the dangerous dynamics of her world. 
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trizk's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? No

3.5

It is important to appreciate beauty, even when it is evil.

I'm unsure if I'll keep my rating the same, but I just want to say that the summary for the book doesn't really match the reading experience.
The "power struggle" with her cousins is not a huge part of this book imo. Especially if you thought the political machinations were going to be similar to other political fantasy novels.
The romantic relationship that forms between the MC and her love interest isn't believable to me. Because of circumstances, you have to sift through so many layers of the LI that by the time you figure out his true nature/personality, it feels like the book is damn near over.

Now onto the things I enjoyed. I liked seeing how even early on, Jemisin played around with POV. I liked how it felt like I needed to get to the very end of the book to fully understand where things were going. The writing kept me engaged from the first page, especially by 30% when things felt like they sped up a bit more. The setting of Sky itself was incredibly interesting with its presentation as a pristine building that contradicts the happenings going on within it. I also really adored Sieh and Yeine, both as characters, and their relationship with one another which was incredibly sweet. 

I liked that the novel touched on colonialism, however things felt a little too on the nose for me. I probably would've thought the book was better if I hadn't read a bit of Fifth Season way before. I'd recommend people to start there first because the author has truly improved since this debut! 

P.S. For any of my fellow sexual trauma survivors, there is a scene where
the characters very casually discuss the rape of the mc that triggered me, so if you might be sensitive to this, I'd recommend skipping this one or just being cautious.
 
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chrisljm's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I’ve become disillusioned to fantasy recently but I found myself really enjoying The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and N.K. Jemisin’s writing. 

The mythology she created and the way it tied to their current world system was fascinating. So beautiful and tragic. I also really liked the narration, how fragmented and nonlinear it was, and the way it gave the prose a cosmic dreaminess. 

Of course the story itself wasn’t perfect and I found it a bit lacking, particularly the competition to be heir. With so much riding on the ceremony, as well as Yeine’s pride to win the competition, Yeine didn’t put in much effort. I also found the resolution/the most pivotal moments of the climax to lack a real sense of tension. 

I will be tuning into the sequel based solely on how intriguing the god and godling lore was.
I truly loved the idea of the Three and how they must exist together, and I hope to see if they eventually work their way back to this throughout the series.
 
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talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious 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

3.5

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dkranenburg99's review against another edition

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

4.25

 “Whether you live or die is irrelevant. You are Arameri, and like all of us, you will serve.”

After completing the masterpiece that is The Broken Earth Trilogy, I knew I had to check out the rest of what NK Jemisin has to offer and her debut did not disappoint. A succession fraught with gods and magic? Sign me up. Jemisin's authorial voice continues to draw me in and get a few solid laughs from me, the main character's internal monologue was so fun and never grew stale. This is a book where I can say it was the right length for the story it is telling. I'm interested to see where this trilogy goes. 
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vigil's review against another edition

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

2.75

this book, was not amazing. plotwise, it was very promising and admittedly, i love an
apotheosis
story,  so on this front i was easy to please. that said i don’t think it was done  as deftly as it could’ve been, as any real moments of insight into plot and character developments where easily undercut by scene after scene of yeine’s coochie quaking because of nahadoth, a half baked and unconvincing romance that never made me quite believe that their feelings towards each other where separate from
enefa’s influence
nor that they genuinely enjoyed each other outside of inexplicable horniness. it grew more believable at the final portions, but by then it was too late. 

the romance in general is not to my taste, as i can only liken it to being nk jemisin’s take on a sarah j mass plot, with shoddy the worldbuilding and flat characters included. yeine has moments where she’s almost interesting, as does nahadoth, but then jemisin has them fall back into the role of the new adult jerkass inhuman romance plot (which i must say, an inhuman mortal immortal romance can in fact work, and my prime recommendation is the winternight trilogy, starting with the bear and the nightingale) and then their boring again. the most intriguing aspects of this book happen when they are not involved with one another (and thus the main plot as the two are inextricably tied) such as when yeine is looking into her mother’s past, or her own personal connection with her home country and family there, and when nahadoth interacts with the other gods, particularly the flashbacks. 

this book could’ve been great, and it wasn’t a terrible reading experience, but it wasn’t all it could’ve been.
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nixieba25f's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

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ecmbeanie's review against another edition

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

4.75

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mostlyvoidpartiallystars's review against another edition

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adventurous dark reflective 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

4.25

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laguerrelewis's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

5.0

Is anyone surprised? This book has all the hallmarks of why we love Jemisin: a rich, exciting, creative world, compelling characters, and a narrative voice unlike any other I’ve read period, much less in this genre. I have the whole trilogy, and I’m excited to see where the story builds from here. It’s great to see where Jemisin began to carve out her place in the line of great novelists, and she popped out almost fully polished and ready to go.
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