maiahiraya

[maiahiraya]

Draco Malfoy from Measure of A Man by @inadaze22

"I'm perfectly aware of my duties, Granger." Malfoy's voice was dangerously soft with an undercurrent of pure steel. "I am constantly reminded of them."

I don't even know how to describe what I feel about this Draco.. he's.. Bitter, dutiful, troubled, private, determined, devoted, caring in his own way, confusing, interesting.. compassionate in his own way.. I'm swimming into dangerous water next to Hermione lol, we both want to solve the puzzle called Draco Malfoy

P.s. chapter 15 is up, MUST READ.. BRACE YOURSELVES

[maiahiraya]

Theodore Nott from Measure of A Man by @inadaze22

"The quietest people have the loudest minds.

Hermione had always found the quote thought-provoking, not only because it was true, but also because she couldn't think of a more accurate statement to describe Theodore Nott.

He had never been loud—always reading and studying—which was something Hermione appreciated. As an adult, his pensive nature had transformed into the sort that frustrated most people, but never her. It kept Hermione alert, drew her attention, and constantly made her wonder what he was really thinking.

Some people were quiet because they had nothing happening in their minds, some had too much, but Theo's silence was neither. In fact, his squinty green eyes and purposefully understated presence reminded Hermione of yet another quote:

It takes one to know one.

And because she knew exactly what that look meant, she was well aware that Theo was scheming." - chapter 1

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It's impossible not to have a crush on Theo, legit impossible 😩😩😩 sooo.. my main goal might be to draw all the supportive characters from Moam? Why nott! 🤭🤭🤭

[maiahiraya]

ayt madashi, pillar of the mountain, i offer you a clean blade.

[maiahiraya]

shae. i need you to be my weather man.

[maiahiraya]

I have been chosen and trained to carry the gift of the gods for the good and protection of the people, and against all enemies of the clan, no matter their strength or numbers. I join myself to the fellowship of jade warriors, freely and with my whole being, and I will call them my brothers-in-arms. Should I ever be disloyal to my brother, may I die by the blade. Should I ever fail to come to the aid of my brother, may I die by the blade. Should I ever seek personal gain at the expense of my brother, may I die by the blade. Under the eyes of all the gods in Heaven, I pledge this. On my honor, my life, and my jade.

[maiahiraya]

1.6k celebration: jade city requested by @celiabowens

Lan had concluded long ago that there was little he could say or do if his younger siblings were determined to be cruel to each other.

[maiahiraya]

2020 readathon: jade city, by fonda lee

[maiahiraya]

The Mountain would come down from the forest and would not rest until the remaining Kauls were dead.

[maiahiraya]

T H E G R E E N B O N E S A G A

It had almost turned out that way.

[maiahiraya]

T H E G R E E N B O N E S A G A

It had almost turned out that way.

[maiahiraya]

I’M GOING TO KILL THEM ALL.

[maiahiraya]

🤤

Contact your local Lantern Men for the best deals on any luxury cars!

[maiahiraya]

i’m on my 2nd reread and YES

PSA: READ THE GREEN BONE SAGA BY FONDA LEE. You're welcome.

[maiahiraya]

lit meme: series or books [2/10] ↝ the daevabad trilogy by s.a. chakraborty

i do not believe ambitious men who say the only route to peace and prosperity lies in giving them more power—particularly when they do it with lands and people who are not theirs.

[maiahiraya]

@sanktalina‘s edit exchange — legendborn. ⤷ for @acotars

don’t make your life about the loss. make it about the love.

[maiahiraya]

“I have become something wonderful, she thought. I have become something terrible. Was she now a goddess or a monster? Perhaps neither. Perhaps both.”

- R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

[maiahiraya]

Best Books I read in 2021

Nobody asked, but here are the best books I read in 2021.

1. The Greenbone Saga by Fonda Lee

"Perhaps that was the great tragedy of jade warriors and their families. Even when we win, we suffer."

Now my favorite book series of all time. The Green Bone Saga chronicles the life of the Kaul family of the No Peak clan. This is being marketed as The Godfather meets kung fu meets magic and that tracks, but this series is much much more than that. The Green Bone Saga, at its core, is a family drama - and that's where the series excelled: its interesting and complex characters and their relationships. It has one of the best character arcs I have read (Hilo) and some of my favorite female characters (Shae, Wen, Mada). It also has one of the best worldbuilding in high fantasy. From the first page of Jade City, Fonda Lee will immediately immerse you in this fantasy metropolis. It's very visual and for me it played out like scenes from a Wong Kar-Wai film. Not to mention that it has well-written fight scenes, I think this is the first time I could picture out a fight scene vividly in my head (Fonda Lee's martial arts background definitely came in handy). This series is also heavy on the geopolitics and economics and I absolutely enjoyed this, it's one of my favorite things about GBS. I appreciate that Fonda Lee detailed the logistics of running a crime family, not just the military side, but also the business side. I'm not a fan of gangster/mafia stories and I usually steer clear of those, but picking up Jade City was one of the best decisions I made as this series has become my number 1 favorite book series.

Rating:

Jade City - 4/5 stars

Jade War - 4.5/5 stars

Jade Legacy - 10/5 stars (favorite book of the year and maybe ever?)

Overall - 5/5 stars

TW: violence, death, drug use, murder, torture, sexual content, addiction, abortion, pedophilia, rape

2. The Poppy War trilogy by RF Kuang

"History repeated itself, and she was only the latest iteration of the same scene in a tapestry that had been spun long before her birth."

The Poppy War trilogy is a grimdark military fantasy inspired by the second Sino-Japanese war, particularly the Rape of Nanking, and the Chinese Civil War. If you're familiar with those events, then you'll basically know the general plot of the series, just add shamanism and drugs and lots of heartbreak. Before Jade Legacy came out, this was my number 1 fantasy series, it's still in my top three though. This series is INTENSE. It will break you. It certainly broke me and I still haven't recovered since I finished the trilogy in July. Actually, I still haven't processed the entire and I want to break this series down because there's lots to think about (the commentary on colonialism and that ending alone give me lots of food for thought). Rin had one of the most interesting arcs I have read. She's an already unhinged girl becoming more and more unhinged as the series progresses. Watching her descend into madness and her realizing she's actually the villain and not the hero was both fun and heartbreaking. This also has my favorite platonic relationship ever (rinkitay, my babies). The series is not perfect, I have some issues with it but it's still one of the best I have ever read.

Rating:

The Poppy War - 5/5 stars

The Dragon Republic - 5/5 stars

The Burning God - 4/5 stars

Overall - 5/5 stars (still like it as a whole despite some issues in TBG)

TW: graphic violence, war-related violence, rape, sexual violence, substance addiction, massacres, genocide, self harm, abuse, human experimentation, cannibalism

3. The Sword of Kaigen by ML Wang

"Wholeness, she had learned, was not the absence of pain but the ability to hold it."

The more time passes, the more i realize i love this book, and it has cemented its place as one of my all-time favorite books. This is so underrated (only 7k ratings in goodreads, it's still underrated compared to other popular fantasy books) and you should read it now. The commentaries on propaganda, war, misogyny, family, and parenthood were written well and I enjoyed reading those. The characterizations were on point. The book had two POVs: Mamoru - the son, and Misaki - the mother. Misaki had one of the best character arcs I have read and is now one of my favorite female characters, the book is basically one giant character study of Misaki. The book also had an unusual structure, it had two climaxes, one leading up to the battle near the middle of the book, and another battle (this time more internal) near the end. The magic system is also interesting. The battle scenes were amazing. These people are basically waterbenders and they took waterbending to a whole new level. This book also made me legit cry, lol. It's intense, it's heartbreaking, but it's also hopeful. If you enjoyed the poppy war and would like to read a mature version of a:tla, then go read this book now!!!!

Rating - 4.75/5 stars

TW: death, violence, miscarriage, rape, suicide

4. The City of Brass and The Kingdom of Copper by SA Chakraborty

"People do not thrive under tyrants, Alizayd; they do not come up with innovations when they're busy trying to stay alive, or offer creative ideas when error is punished by the hooves of a karkadann."

City of Brass and Kingdom of Copper satisfied my craving for something MENA-inspired after We Hunt the Flame massively let me down. The first book was the very definition of no plot, just vibes but the vibes were immaculate and I had a fun time reading it. It was slow and focused on worldbuilding and politics. Characters still felt surface-level in the first book but I began to like them better in the second book. Shoutout to Prince Ali, my precious economist. As someone who previously worked in the government, I super enjoyed the fantasy economics and politics of development here. I have yet to read the third book but I hope it delivers a good ending.

Rating:

The City of Brass - 3/5 stars

The Kingdom of Copper - 4/5 stars

5. The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang

Favorite nonfiction book this year. This chronicles the events before, during, and after the Rape of Nanking. The book is easy to read but difficult to digest because of the subject matter but it's very eye-opening. The world made sure that Germany never forgets the holocaust. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Nanking, as there are still groups of people persistently denying the true nature of the massacre, or claiming that it never happened at all. RF Kuang dedicated the first poppy war book to Iris. In the epilogue to the 2011 edition, Iris' husband revealed that it was Iris' dream to have her books be made into documentaries or films, and RF Kuang dedicating her book to Iris made me emotional, lol.

TW: rape, sexual violence, death, gore, genocide, racism

Rating - 5/5 stars

6. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

No need to say anything, I think everyone likes this.

Rating - 4/5 stars