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ninetalevixen
A little disappointing that Haven didn't end up with Summer; he was awesome. But he did cheat on Ashley, breaking both sisters' hearts. And Ashley is suuper bitchy, though Haven of course isn't blameless either. Great symbolism, and a different kind of Dessen novel which I enjoyed.
2018: Series buddy read with ✨Skye✨! ❤
Oh, this was lots of fun. Political intrigue, ridiculously opulent displays of wealth, meddling gods, weird magic, and all that good stuff. The character development is tame, if at all present beyond - which I didn't love, but it happened. Anyway, on to the next one!
Oh, this was lots of fun. Political intrigue, ridiculously opulent displays of wealth, meddling gods, weird magic, and all that good stuff. The character development is tame, if at all present beyond
Spoiler
the clear shift toward romantic Numair/Daine, with the jealousy on both sides and the little flirting scenes
3.5 stars.
There some quite a bit of tropey/YA cliche stuff, but it was awesomely dark and the premise itself was full of potential that was reasonably met.
There some quite a bit of tropey/YA cliche stuff, but it was awesomely dark and the premise itself was full of potential that was reasonably met.
I have very fond memories of this book because it was one of many that my wonderful first-grade teacher read to us, but in hindsight I'm really not happy with how it seems to present Chinese culture as "other" and quirky, or the inaccuracies. (Our "alphabet" literally doesn't contain the sounds for "tikki tikki tembo no sa rembo chari bari ruchi pip peri pembo," though I'll admit it's catchy — as evidenced by my ability to recite it even now.)
I gave this book a one-star review after I read it, before the Internet was up in arms and long before I found out anything had even happened. I mostly keep to myself on Goodreads, so I'm not taking sides, but I figured I'd mention that my rating was entirely unrelated to the author's character.
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I'm really not into; it annoys me when I get invested in a book only to have this trope played. The characters felt stagnant, and the descriptions were the bad kind of graphic.
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I'm really not into
Spoiler
"nerd next door turns out to be a psychopathic killer"
I don't read a ton of thrillers or even mystery novels, but it's the jewels like these that keep me occasionally returning to the genre. It's maybe the furthest thing you can get from literary fiction, but it's entertaining and the characters are likable enough; there's family drama and decades of history catching up with the present, lots of rapidly changing alliances, and above all there's lots of action.
So it's not really my usual fare, but it's a great change of pace. (Shoutout to OverDrive for reminding me it was almost due back to the library; I'm glad I didn't miss out on this one.)
So it's not really my usual fare, but it's a great change of pace. (Shoutout to OverDrive for reminding me it was almost due back to the library; I'm glad I didn't miss out on this one.)
3.5 ambivalent stars. (At some point I considered giving it 4, but for the reasons explained below I just can’t.)
This is a fluffy, lovely, comfortable story of first love (but not first boyfriend, which was different yet relatable), family relationships (including lots of hilarious and exasperating smol beans, which I’m always a sucker for), working parents, socioeconomic differences, coming-of-age... the list goes on. As you might guess, there are a lot of cliches (best friend is revealed to be toxic, she tries to give him her savings and it backfires, “we can’t be together because of [threat from third party],” etc, etc) — the last was particularly frustrating because it followed an actually interesting plot twist (which was really the main conflict, so it came into play a bit later than I would’ve expected).
There are some sweet moments, like the development of Samantha and Jase’s relationship (minus the aforementioned short-lived breakup and the awkwardness that was the First Time scene) and Tim’s character arc and most scenes with the kids all together; the slice-of-life summer idyll is for the most part what I love in my YA realistic fiction. But I saw the Nan subplot coming from a mile away (points for not trying to force resolution/closure there, though) and honestly, while this book is quite nice it doesn’t add much — in terms of original plot, memorable characters, or representation of any kind — to the genre.
This is a fluffy, lovely, comfortable story of first love (but not first boyfriend, which was different yet relatable), family relationships (including lots of hilarious and exasperating smol beans, which I’m always a sucker for), working parents, socioeconomic differences, coming-of-age... the list goes on. As you might guess, there are a lot of cliches (best friend is revealed to be toxic, she tries to give him her savings and it backfires, “we can’t be together because of [threat from third party],” etc, etc) — the last was particularly frustrating because it followed an actually interesting plot twist (which was really the main conflict, so it came into play a bit later than I would’ve expected).
There are some sweet moments, like the development of Samantha and Jase’s relationship (minus the aforementioned short-lived breakup and the awkwardness that was the First Time scene) and Tim’s character arc and most scenes with the kids all together; the slice-of-life summer idyll is for the most part what I love in my YA realistic fiction. But I saw the Nan subplot coming from a mile away (points for not trying to force resolution/closure there, though) and honestly, while this book is quite nice it doesn’t add much — in terms of original plot, memorable characters, or representation of any kind — to the genre.
I honestly didn't like any of the characters very much, especially Briony. A lot like Born Wicked, but more predictable and flat. However, there was a really strong sense of place; I love the idea of the swamp!
(I received a free eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.)
The individual stories were really engaging: exciting and descriptive. I also enjoyed the recipes included, some of which I want to try and some of which were less appealing but equally interesting. The diversity of cultures and values gives it extra depth and worldview, too - it's well planned and well executed.
My main critique is that the order of the stories doesn't make sense to me. Following the alphabet is cute, but doesn't really seem to match the overall tone of the stories; even though the different dishes/ingredients are the focus, and it's stated multiple times that the author associates a distinct memory with each, jumping around to different points in time felt a little disorienting. I think I would rather it were organized along a linear timeline, and possibly further subdivided by motif/theme (family, travel, self-discovery, experimenting, etc).
The individual stories were really engaging: exciting and descriptive. I also enjoyed the recipes included, some of which I want to try and some of which were less appealing but equally interesting. The diversity of cultures and values gives it extra depth and worldview, too - it's well planned and well executed.
My main critique is that the order of the stories doesn't make sense to me. Following the alphabet is cute, but doesn't really seem to match the overall tone of the stories; even though the different dishes/ingredients are the focus, and it's stated multiple times that the author associates a distinct memory with each, jumping around to different points in time felt a little disorienting. I think I would rather it were organized along a linear timeline, and possibly further subdivided by motif/theme (family, travel, self-discovery, experimenting, etc).
(I received a free eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.)
Look, changing (or even just challenging) the status quo is an exhausting, thankless undertaking. That’s why so many people treat “feminism” like a dirty word and self-described feminists as persona non grata. So for its bold stance alone I give the book and its author kudos — and more so for its overarching message of optimism and empiwerment. (However, there are moments where the tone gets a little haughty and superior, which is off-putting. Not everyone is, after all, in a position to realize or challenge the extent of their own privilege.)
Majkut does a pretty good job examining in depth various problematic aspects of marriage-related US traditions, with a disclaimer regarding its emphasis on white cis heterosexual relationships and individuals. It’s clear she put a lot of thought and effort into the process, with lots of anecdotes and research [and pop culture/current event references], though their integration into the book is sometimes a little awkward. Additionally, the focus is a little scattered; while it’s obviously impossible to tackle every issue regarding the Wedding Industrial Complex, the “intersectional”
part of her intersectional feminism (ie, LGBTQ and racial discrimination) sometimes seems neglected or sidelined.
Additionally, for a book that put so much emphasis on labels and precise language, there were ironically a lot of grammar errors, euphemisms, and awkward hyperboles. Honestly, I think the book could have benefitted from more editing — a lot of the mistakes were straightforward and should’ve been caught in the proofreading process; others would take a little more work to fix (ie, restructuring and rephrasing, or eliminating altogether) but would ultimately become clearer in meaning.
Look, changing (or even just challenging) the status quo is an exhausting, thankless undertaking. That’s why so many people treat “feminism” like a dirty word and self-described feminists as persona non grata. So for its bold stance alone I give the book and its author kudos — and more so for its overarching message of optimism and empiwerment. (However, there are moments where the tone gets a little haughty and superior, which is off-putting. Not everyone is, after all, in a position to realize or challenge the extent of their own privilege.)
Majkut does a pretty good job examining in depth various problematic aspects of marriage-related US traditions, with a disclaimer regarding its emphasis on white cis heterosexual relationships and individuals. It’s clear she put a lot of thought and effort into the process, with lots of anecdotes and research [and pop culture/current event references], though their integration into the book is sometimes a little awkward. Additionally, the focus is a little scattered; while it’s obviously impossible to tackle every issue regarding the Wedding Industrial Complex, the “intersectional”
part of her intersectional feminism (ie, LGBTQ and racial discrimination) sometimes seems neglected or sidelined.
Additionally, for a book that put so much emphasis on labels and precise language, there were ironically a lot of grammar errors, euphemisms, and awkward hyperboles. Honestly, I think the book could have benefitted from more editing — a lot of the mistakes were straightforward and should’ve been caught in the proofreading process; others would take a little more work to fix (ie, restructuring and rephrasing, or eliminating altogether) but would ultimately become clearer in meaning.