Reviews

The Boy I Am by K L Kettle

grabowsk_'s review

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

staceyj23's review

dark tense fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

effy's review

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

I really enjoyed the way that gender roles weren't just switched but how the balance of power shifting in that way would change the society and the way that people abused their power. This book was definitely uncomfortable to read, especially as there are points where the boys seemingly make light of each other being raped / sexually assaulted. But this book is meant to make you feel uncomfortable.

Once I found my footing in this book, I found it really engaging and I wanted to just keep reading to see what would happen. There were a lot of twists and turns and I appreciated the way that the reader's perception of the world was warped by this book being written in first person narrative. The ending felt a little trite but it wasn't inherently bad, maybe just too convenient for my tastes? It also feels as though there is room for a sequel to exist which I would be really intrigued to see where the story could go next.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Murder, Medical content, and Medical trauma

feedmefiction's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

ohbookisme's review

dark mysterious tense fast-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

5.0

There aren’t many books that render me speechless – but this is certainly one of them. To all fans of The Hunger Games, The Handmaid’s Tale, and any dystopia: trust me when I say, you’ll love this.

"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙷𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝙱𝚘𝚢𝚜: 
𝚆𝚎 𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚢. 
𝙾𝚞𝚛 𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚎𝚌𝚑 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚊𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚍. 
𝚃𝚘 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗."

I was amazed at how hungover this book left me. This book takes immersion and gender subversion to a whole new height. By flipping the gender roles, I was caught off-guard by how many times I subconsciously had assumed a character’s gender – only then to spot the pronoun, and then correct myself.

The world was so vivid and rich, and the world-building chapters gave such invaluable insight to the situation and the life of being a boy. Some books feel as though they begin and end within the pages, whereas this world feels as though it exists both before and after the text. 

I feel privileged to have lived within this text for a short time.

"𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚊 𝚋𝚘𝚢 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚠𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚕? 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚜𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚝."

booksletusescape's review

dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism

Moderate: Sexual assault and Violence

scottiesandbooks's review

adventurous dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0