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clairbear1989's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.75
roxyreads's review
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
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
4.0
disnelyse's review
adventurous
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Addiction and Violence
Minor: Death of parent and Slavery
leafblade's review
1.0
This was more a two or three stars read, but based on how problematic it was I can't give it more than one star. I honestly only have bad things to say about this book.
On Gentleman's guide, Felicity was already an "I'm not like other girls" case, and I hoped that seeing her grown up (under YA terms) would fix that. And it did, but only when it wanted to. Which starts my crusade against white feminism.
We see Felicity reunite with an old friend of hers that she had fought with bc this girl liked parties and dresses and Felicity felt betrayed because HOW DARE SHE!!!!!! She keeps thinking this way through most of the book, stupid dresses and stupid voice and stupid social gatherings, and at some point Johanna (this girl I've been talking about) confronts her. "You think I'm stupid because I like dresses and parties but I'm not", and I'm like okay this is going somewhere. "I'm not stupid, I like to study plants and animals!!!!" *dramatic brake noises* LISTEN you don't need to be a scholar to be worthy of respect. Mackenzi chose to pick a route for this character that made it very clear that had she only liked parties and not studying nature, she would've been just a slut. And, like, not to have radical thoughts slutshaming is wrong and women don't need to have an IQ of 250 to be respected.
Felicity's "feminism" was highly individualistic, and Mackenzi makes no effort to give it a chance to not be. Felicity has no contact with other women except Johanna (see above) and Sim, a black Muslim pirate that deserves a paragraph all of her own that'll come later. We see "I can do that, I'm unstoppable, I'm strong, I'm independent" but we don't ever see women hyping each other up. There were a few stances of that, like Felicity screaming at Johanna to not marry a guy, but all very shallow and useless.
This book was pitched to me as having a queer girl pirate gang, and it just didn't. The friendships are a fucking mess, and I would even say the girls aren't even friends. Felicity doesn't really like Johanna, and she pays Sim to be with her. Johanna and Sim don't talk often, and when they do it's to go for each other's throats. Sim thinks Johanna is a slut and Johanna thinks Sim is a savage (remember, black muslim).
Speaking of white feminism: WHAT THE FUCK DID MACKENZI TRY TO EVEN DO WITH SIM'S CHARACTER AND ARC. IT WAS SO FUCKED UP!!!!
I'll say it again: she's black, Muslim, a pirate wears a hijab (I guess, since Felicity keeps calling it a kerchief but it's obviously religious) and is the daughter of some pirate king that guards an island full of dragons. She's trying to steal a map of this island from Johanna's family, since she doesn't want everyone (read: white people) to know dragons exist because their scales, blood, bone and marrow are like drugs and are used for medicine. The dragons are killed or tortured to do that. So, Felicity finds out but never stops calling her a thief, and tells Johanna what she's trying to do. Enter the White Girl Union (Against Black Girl) that made me want to close this book and burn it, even if it's signed and personalized.
Johanna and Felicity deadass don't trust Sim for a second, even after they find out about her intentions. They FORCE HER to let them into the island, give them the map, show them the dragons, let them pick samples of scales. They speak of showing England the dragons to learn the secret to immortality or sth (ENGLAND, BIGGEST COLONIZER OF HUMAN HISTORY). When Sim says she'd rather not do this, they start whining about how they have no place in the world (an outright lie) and Sim is stripping them of the only place they can belong to. How "the world is changing", and telling everyone about dragons is part of that change. Sim's family has been guarding the dragons for literal centuries and everything has been alright, but Felicity and Johanna tell Sim it hasn't, because Johanna's (WHITE) mom was able to map the island and so the black pirates can't be that good at their job after all, right????
I'll get this out of my system: WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK
Before this, Mackenzi makes sure to create the perfect circumstances to look under Sim's hijab. She's dying and unconscious and Felicity needs to make a tourniquet and she just... rips Sim's hijab off her head. Mackenzi then proceeds to tell us what her hair looks like. I hope you're all decent enough to see the problem here, I honestly have no strength to even start explaining.
The queer rep was a fucking mess, in absolute Mackenzi Lee fashion.
Felicity is (allegedly) aromantic and asexual. These words are never said on page, because it wouldn't have been historically accurate, even though we're dealing with LITERAL DRAGONS, that are way more historically accurate, as we all know.
The signs for Felicity being aroace were all over the place. She's uncomfortable with sexual jokes, she doesn't want to marry, she doesn't feel anything when Sim kisses her, she just wants to study medicine, she says no to some random guy we only know for ten pages proposes to her. Mackenzi doesn't have a clue what being aromantic or asexual means, and it felt like she was just doing whatever about that and hoping we somehow realize Felicity's sexuality.
Oh and by the way, Sim kisses her to see if she can make Felicity feel something. Not fucked up at all, nope.
Johanna wasn't even queer, and Sim's sexuality seemed to be Felicitysexual in a really awkward way.
When Felicity first encounters Monty and Percy at the beginning of the book, she tells us she wasn't that okay with their relationship before, but she is now because she's learnt that love is love or some shit. But when Monty tells her towards the end of the book that Sim likes her, Felicity snaps "I'M NOT PERVERTED LIKE YOU AND PERCY". Monty laughs, she doesn't say sorry, we aren't told in any way that what she just said isn't okay. It was treated like she just said "actually bro I don't really like women, is that okay?" but she deadass used a freudian term two hundred years before its time to be homophobic and no one said anything.
Conclusion: Mackenzi spent too much time researching historical facts and not nearly enough time researching feminism, racism, slutshaming, colonialism, asexuality, positive queer rep, being aromantic, homophobia and whatever the fuck else she missed completely in this book.
Knowing what her next book is, I don't know why she feels the need to keep digging into harmful queer rep. Is she queer??? I honestly don't know, why does she do this????
On Gentleman's guide, Felicity was already an "I'm not like other girls" case, and I hoped that seeing her grown up (under YA terms) would fix that. And it did, but only when it wanted to. Which starts my crusade against white feminism.
We see Felicity reunite with an old friend of hers that she had fought with bc this girl liked parties and dresses and Felicity felt betrayed because HOW DARE SHE!!!!!! She keeps thinking this way through most of the book, stupid dresses and stupid voice and stupid social gatherings, and at some point Johanna (this girl I've been talking about) confronts her. "You think I'm stupid because I like dresses and parties but I'm not", and I'm like okay this is going somewhere. "I'm not stupid, I like to study plants and animals!!!!" *dramatic brake noises* LISTEN you don't need to be a scholar to be worthy of respect. Mackenzi chose to pick a route for this character that made it very clear that had she only liked parties and not studying nature, she would've been just a slut. And, like, not to have radical thoughts slutshaming is wrong and women don't need to have an IQ of 250 to be respected.
Felicity's "feminism" was highly individualistic, and Mackenzi makes no effort to give it a chance to not be. Felicity has no contact with other women except Johanna (see above) and Sim, a black Muslim pirate that deserves a paragraph all of her own that'll come later. We see "I can do that, I'm unstoppable, I'm strong, I'm independent" but we don't ever see women hyping each other up. There were a few stances of that, like Felicity screaming at Johanna to not marry a guy, but all very shallow and useless.
This book was pitched to me as having a queer girl pirate gang, and it just didn't. The friendships are a fucking mess, and I would even say the girls aren't even friends. Felicity doesn't really like Johanna, and she pays Sim to be with her. Johanna and Sim don't talk often, and when they do it's to go for each other's throats. Sim thinks Johanna is a slut and Johanna thinks Sim is a savage (remember, black muslim).
Speaking of white feminism: WHAT THE FUCK DID MACKENZI TRY TO EVEN DO WITH SIM'S CHARACTER AND ARC. IT WAS SO FUCKED UP!!!!
I'll say it again: she's black, Muslim, a pirate wears a hijab (I guess, since Felicity keeps calling it a kerchief but it's obviously religious) and is the daughter of some pirate king that guards an island full of dragons. She's trying to steal a map of this island from Johanna's family, since she doesn't want everyone (read: white people) to know dragons exist because their scales, blood, bone and marrow are like drugs and are used for medicine. The dragons are killed or tortured to do that. So, Felicity finds out but never stops calling her a thief, and tells Johanna what she's trying to do. Enter the White Girl Union (Against Black Girl) that made me want to close this book and burn it, even if it's signed and personalized.
Johanna and Felicity deadass don't trust Sim for a second, even after they find out about her intentions. They FORCE HER to let them into the island, give them the map, show them the dragons, let them pick samples of scales. They speak of showing England the dragons to learn the secret to immortality or sth (ENGLAND, BIGGEST COLONIZER OF HUMAN HISTORY). When Sim says she'd rather not do this, they start whining about how they have no place in the world (an outright lie) and Sim is stripping them of the only place they can belong to. How "the world is changing", and telling everyone about dragons is part of that change. Sim's family has been guarding the dragons for literal centuries and everything has been alright, but Felicity and Johanna tell Sim it hasn't, because Johanna's (WHITE) mom was able to map the island and so the black pirates can't be that good at their job after all, right????
I'll get this out of my system: WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK
Before this, Mackenzi makes sure to create the perfect circumstances to look under Sim's hijab. She's dying and unconscious and Felicity needs to make a tourniquet and she just... rips Sim's hijab off her head. Mackenzi then proceeds to tell us what her hair looks like. I hope you're all decent enough to see the problem here, I honestly have no strength to even start explaining.
The queer rep was a fucking mess, in absolute Mackenzi Lee fashion.
Felicity is (allegedly) aromantic and asexual. These words are never said on page, because it wouldn't have been historically accurate, even though we're dealing with LITERAL DRAGONS, that are way more historically accurate, as we all know.
The signs for Felicity being aroace were all over the place. She's uncomfortable with sexual jokes, she doesn't want to marry, she doesn't feel anything when Sim kisses her, she just wants to study medicine, she says no to some random guy we only know for ten pages proposes to her. Mackenzi doesn't have a clue what being aromantic or asexual means, and it felt like she was just doing whatever about that and hoping we somehow realize Felicity's sexuality.
Oh and by the way, Sim kisses her to see if she can make Felicity feel something. Not fucked up at all, nope.
Johanna wasn't even queer, and Sim's sexuality seemed to be Felicitysexual in a really awkward way.
When Felicity first encounters Monty and Percy at the beginning of the book, she tells us she wasn't that okay with their relationship before, but she is now because she's learnt that love is love or some shit. But when Monty tells her towards the end of the book that Sim likes her, Felicity snaps "I'M NOT PERVERTED LIKE YOU AND PERCY". Monty laughs, she doesn't say sorry, we aren't told in any way that what she just said isn't okay. It was treated like she just said "actually bro I don't really like women, is that okay?" but she deadass used a freudian term two hundred years before its time to be homophobic and no one said anything.
Conclusion: Mackenzi spent too much time researching historical facts and not nearly enough time researching feminism, racism, slutshaming, colonialism, asexuality, positive queer rep, being aromantic, homophobia and whatever the fuck else she missed completely in this book.
Knowing what her next book is, I don't know why she feels the need to keep digging into harmful queer rep. Is she queer??? I honestly don't know, why does she do this????
graceh6068's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
4.5
joanna1905's review
4.0
I have kinda mixed feelings about this book, I definitely enjoyed it but not quite as much as I enjoyed Gentleman’s Guide. However, this is through no real fault of this book. The thing that tips the scales in favour is Gentleman’s Guide is Monty and Percy’s story, I loved watching them struggled with their feelings for each other and grow from friends to lovers.
I’m a sticker for a queer love story and that was something this book didn’t really have. However, I would still say this book has some great queer rep! Not only did we get some great glimpses of Monty and Percy but we pretty much get confirmation of Felicity’s asexuality. Whilst the term asexual isn’t used (likely due to the fact that this term probably didn’t exist back then.) This rep was super awesome to see as asexuality is very rarely given any attention in media.
Another awesome thing about this book is the glimpse we get into the struggles women faced in the eighteenth century. While we still have far to go when it comes to woman’s rights it’s remarkable to see how far we’ve come. It’s inspiring to see what can be achieved when people continue to fight and dream of a better future.
Felicity is a character that I neither love or hate, at times I really like her but other times she annoys me with how rude she can be. However, this feeds into something that I absolutely adore. Lee provides an incredible example of how men/societies treatment of women manifests as internal misogyny.
Despite her intelligence Felicity has long looked down upon her childhood friend Johanna who loves ‘girly’ things like clothes, parties and socialising. Johanna is an intelligent, well educated so far from shallow and insipid. When Johanna begins showing interest in the things Felicity views as inferior their friendship ends. However later in the book we get to see Felicity grow and understand how problematic her beliefs had been.
Internal misogyny is something most women (myself included) have struggled with. Our society often deems women who like makeup and clothes as inferior to educated women, deeming them shallow and materialistic. When in reality being into ‘girly’ things and being educated are not mutually exclusive. Neither makes a woman lesser and there are many educated women who also love makeup and clothes.
I liked Sim’s character, it’s great to have a Muslim main character who is also queer. It’s also fantastic to see how despite having feelings for Felicity once she knows Felicity isn’t interested she continues to act like a great friend. No spooking over the friend zone in this book!
Overall this is a fantastic book and a great sequel to the first book!
I’m a sticker for a queer love story and that was something this book didn’t really have. However, I would still say this book has some great queer rep! Not only did we get some great glimpses of Monty and Percy but we pretty much get confirmation of Felicity’s asexuality. Whilst the term asexual isn’t used (likely due to the fact that this term probably didn’t exist back then.) This rep was super awesome to see as asexuality is very rarely given any attention in media.
Another awesome thing about this book is the glimpse we get into the struggles women faced in the eighteenth century. While we still have far to go when it comes to woman’s rights it’s remarkable to see how far we’ve come. It’s inspiring to see what can be achieved when people continue to fight and dream of a better future.
Felicity is a character that I neither love or hate, at times I really like her but other times she annoys me with how rude she can be. However, this feeds into something that I absolutely adore. Lee provides an incredible example of how men/societies treatment of women manifests as internal misogyny.
Despite her intelligence Felicity has long looked down upon her childhood friend Johanna who loves ‘girly’ things like clothes, parties and socialising. Johanna is an intelligent, well educated so far from shallow and insipid. When Johanna begins showing interest in the things Felicity views as inferior their friendship ends. However later in the book we get to see Felicity grow and understand how problematic her beliefs had been.
Internal misogyny is something most women (myself included) have struggled with. Our society often deems women who like makeup and clothes as inferior to educated women, deeming them shallow and materialistic. When in reality being into ‘girly’ things and being educated are not mutually exclusive. Neither makes a woman lesser and there are many educated women who also love makeup and clothes.
I liked Sim’s character, it’s great to have a Muslim main character who is also queer. It’s also fantastic to see how despite having feelings for Felicity once she knows Felicity isn’t interested she continues to act like a great friend. No spooking over the friend zone in this book!
Overall this is a fantastic book and a great sequel to the first book!
mllejoyeuxnoel's review
4.0
Great sequel! I love Felicity Montague, and it was awesome to see such a well-written aro-ace character. Of course it was delightful to revisit my favorite smol gay bois, Monty and Percy. Sim and Johanna: inspiring af. If you loved Gentleman’s Guide, you’ll love this book.
drridareads's review
1.0
MORE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW THESE BOOKS ARE RACIST.
I loved A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue so I was left disappointed when I didn't feel the same about this one. I really wanted to enjoy this book but couldn't.
The best part of A Gentleman's Guide is Percy he is absolutely fucking charming. And Percy with his great nature was like a bonus. So In this book we left those two for the majority of it and it's just not the same anymore it's frankly dry.
Felicity Montague was relatable only superficially (until she was problematic more on that later). She is perusing medicine in an age when it was illegal. I am Thank God doing it in an age when it is legal but still I'm surrounded by misogynistic pricks. I cannot count the times when my male professors ignore what I was saying but listened to it when a male colleague repeated it. And countless other sexist instances. Felicity is a feminist. Voilah me too! But then she is epitome of I'm not liking other girls and so I'm better. Disgusting. And yes she learns.
But it's too little too late. After spending so many pages of her shaming girls around her for having different interest than her. And yeah most of us were conditioned to these beliefs too and we had to learn and it was easier for us in this day and age. But no Idc it's historical fiction I shall not accept problematic characters!
Now about when it got even more problematic. This book took feminism to white feminism too fast. I mean I guess it always was until it became clear. Just because you add characters of colour to your book does not mean it's not racist problematic.
Since I'm a Muslim; do me and black people now how to thank this white lady for giving us representation.
Fuck no. Sim black hijabi pirate is supposed to awesome and goals. The white girl (Felicity) can break laws and whatever but she's gonna call Sim Thief. Sim is trying to protect dragons because ya know White People can not leave anyone alone not even dragons. They gonna colonise the hell outta them too by making them into medicine.
Her intentions are absolutely pure. But then she's manipulated by her 2 white not friends (friends ain't horrible like that). Yes these white girls that hated each other for their different interest now band together against our character of colour; Sim. And can we talk about how they keep talking of Johanna's mom like she's some hero when she's a thief who stole from black people. And of course Felicity and Johanna are not bad people for going to the island and suggesting we use the dragons only the other white people doing this are bad because their not our main characters.
Sim could've been absolutely fucking badass. Instead her whole personality is being attracted to Felicity and doing everything she says.
Oh and I forgot there is this whole part where Johanna and Felicity actually rescue all the African pirates. Because you know we all need some white saviours!
Also Felicity is asexual which thought so from the first book too but she's also low-key homophobic.
I don't know what Hogwarts house Mackenzie Lee is; but I think it's Diversity. And yay you get 10 points for diversity. That's clearly all you wanted.
The dialogue is also annoying. It becomes repetitive. It's witty and tries hard to convince us that this is all a great feminist adventure. When it's just white privilege.
Alternative title:
A Lady's guide to White Feminism!
I'm not a black person so I'm not sure how this white author discussed race and slavery in this book was appropriate or not and so I'm not going to comment on it.
These are my words from my review of the first book. Oh God if I was even thinking about whether or not something was racist it probably was. And I will not be reading any of Mackenzie Lee's books ever again. Because while racism is just plain wrong in her books it's covert racism which is far more problematic because most often we don't realise it's racist so we don't see the problem.
And I'm really sorry my review is sort of all over the place but basically this book is problematic and no amount of witty banter will make me give it more than a single star.
I loved A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue so I was left disappointed when I didn't feel the same about this one. I really wanted to enjoy this book but couldn't.
The best part of A Gentleman's Guide is Percy he is absolutely fucking charming. And Percy with his great nature was like a bonus. So In this book we left those two for the majority of it and it's just not the same anymore it's frankly dry.
Felicity Montague was relatable only superficially (until she was problematic more on that later). She is perusing medicine in an age when it was illegal. I am Thank God doing it in an age when it is legal but still I'm surrounded by misogynistic pricks. I cannot count the times when my male professors ignore what I was saying but listened to it when a male colleague repeated it. And countless other sexist instances. Felicity is a feminist. Voilah me too! But then she is epitome of I'm not liking other girls and so I'm better. Disgusting. And yes she learns.
But it's too little too late. After spending so many pages of her shaming girls around her for having different interest than her. And yeah most of us were conditioned to these beliefs too and we had to learn and it was easier for us in this day and age. But no Idc it's historical fiction I shall not accept problematic characters!
Now about when it got even more problematic. This book took feminism to white feminism too fast. I mean I guess it always was until it became clear. Just because you add characters of colour to your book does not mean it's not racist problematic.
Since I'm a Muslim; do me and black people now how to thank this white lady for giving us representation.
Fuck no. Sim black hijabi pirate is supposed to awesome and goals. The white girl (Felicity) can break laws and whatever but she's gonna call Sim Thief. Sim is trying to protect dragons because ya know White People can not leave anyone alone not even dragons. They gonna colonise the hell outta them too by making them into medicine.
Her intentions are absolutely pure. But then she's manipulated by her 2 white not friends (friends ain't horrible like that). Yes these white girls that hated each other for their different interest now band together against our character of colour; Sim. And can we talk about how they keep talking of Johanna's mom like she's some hero when she's a thief who stole from black people. And of course Felicity and Johanna are not bad people for going to the island and suggesting we use the dragons only the other white people doing this are bad because their not our main characters.
Sim could've been absolutely fucking badass. Instead her whole personality is being attracted to Felicity and doing everything she says.
Oh and I forgot there is this whole part where Johanna and Felicity actually rescue all the African pirates. Because you know we all need some white saviours!
Also Felicity is asexual which thought so from the first book too but she's also low-key homophobic.
I don't know what Hogwarts house Mackenzie Lee is; but I think it's Diversity. And yay you get 10 points for diversity. That's clearly all you wanted.
The dialogue is also annoying. It becomes repetitive. It's witty and tries hard to convince us that this is all a great feminist adventure. When it's just white privilege.
Alternative title:
A Lady's guide to White Feminism!
I'm not a black person so I'm not sure how this white author discussed race and slavery in this book was appropriate or not and so I'm not going to comment on it.
These are my words from my review of the first book. Oh God if I was even thinking about whether or not something was racist it probably was. And I will not be reading any of Mackenzie Lee's books ever again. Because while racism is just plain wrong in her books it's covert racism which is far more problematic because most often we don't realise it's racist so we don't see the problem.
And I'm really sorry my review is sort of all over the place but basically this book is problematic and no amount of witty banter will make me give it more than a single star.
jonisbookquest's review
It was a fun read, but as a white feminist I can safely say that this is the whitest feminism you'll ever see in a book (okay, that might be a bit of an overstatement, but it's still very not good).
There was also a weird colonialist storyline I really didn't vibe with.
Aro/ace rep was cute tho.
There was also a weird colonialist storyline I really didn't vibe with.
Aro/ace rep was cute tho.
bird_song's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0