RF Kuang is the queen of intricate, immersive nearly overwhelming stories. I am still stunned by how much knowledge was gained reading such an entertaining story. Weaving the mythology of the tower of Babel with impact of colonization and a dash of imaginative magic made for such a gut punch of a story. I loved Robin, I hated Robin, I was proud of Robin, I was horrified by Robin and in the end left pretty speechless. I feel like I want a million more stories in this world and I want Kuang to come up with other imaginative ways to teach us all about the world as it truly is. I’m landing on 4.5 stars for this one simply because there were times I felt like the lessons were a little heavy handed but not enough to fully turn me off.
I did this one on audio and I suggest it, this is one heck of a dense novel with lots and lots of educational material wrapped in a fantastical package. It really helped to feel like the story was being told to me rather than having to work my way through the jungle of words on my own.
How many languages can you speak?
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