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jenhurst's review against another edition
2.0
This is a book that I’m convinced generated hype because for some reason the publishers decided to push it and put a lot of money behind it. The reason for this is because it’s about a black, queer women. The marketing is confusing because it’s billed as YA and a romance, of which it’s neither. The protagonist is 28 and the book is about self-discovery/coming of age not romance. I think the book just didn’t know what it wanted to be and I didn’t connect to anyone in the book. I’m sure there’s plenty of people who will like, mainly contemporary lovers but it wasn’t for me.
elinidk's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
mxunsmiley's review against another edition
3.0
An extremely sweet book. It has so much love! Grace has such a big family, most of which are LGBT and nonwhite, and it feels so authentic. She has struggles, makes mistakes, but learns to forgive herself and grow, and rethinks what she really wants versus what she does to impress others. It was definitely so heart-warming and very worth the read. I highly recommend it for nonwhite LGBT people in their 20s because this age range can often be tough for us for various reasons, especially if you're Black and a woman in a STEM field/academia. There's not a lot of literature addressing our struggles at this age so this was a welcome addition to my LGBT library. A very good pick for Book of the Month!
EDIT: After reading this book again for a book club, my thoughts on it have changed. I found that it falls into a lot of the pitfalls that authors who come from a fanfiction background fall into: a reliance on tropes without expanding upon them as well as unrealistic situations (mainly regarding finances and simply the realities of adult life) which are glossed over in favor of abiding by those tropes.
There was also the problem of how, yes, the cast is very diverse, but they're not really given a lot of depth. At first I did enjoy the diversity but when I read it again and discussed it with friends, I realized it was very shallow. Something else I found problematic was the way Yuki was often described with stereotypes associated with Japanese women (cherry blossoms, for example).
I then realized just how selfish Grace was.
I did enjoy the book because it was very entertaining. But when I thought about it more and after I read it again, I had a lot of problems with it. I think that is the problem with the current state of "diverse" publishing: we are catered to, in a way, with all kinds of "representation" but it's rather shallow or even riddled with stereotypes. I forgive the author for it because she is a Black woman and these kinds of stories are never available for Black women, much less LGBT Black women. At the same time, is this what we want to settle for? Shouldn't we demand more thoughtful representation rather than throwing it in for the sake of it? This is a general problem with this kind of fiction, which is clearly "chick lit" for LGBT women. "Chick lit" is riddled with issues as well, though it's escapism largely for white women and full of harmful tropes, and it's something that needs to be revamped as well, I think, but that is a whole other discussion.
EDIT: After reading this book again for a book club, my thoughts on it have changed. I found that it falls into a lot of the pitfalls that authors who come from a fanfiction background fall into: a reliance on tropes without expanding upon them as well as unrealistic situations (mainly regarding finances and simply the realities of adult life) which are glossed over in favor of abiding by those tropes.
There was also the problem of how, yes, the cast is very diverse, but they're not really given a lot of depth. At first I did enjoy the diversity but when I read it again and discussed it with friends, I realized it was very shallow. Something else I found problematic was the way Yuki was often described with stereotypes associated with Japanese women (cherry blossoms, for example).
I then realized just how selfish Grace was.
Spoiler
She turns off her phone for a month without updating Agnes and Ximena after she decides to start therapy. That was really shitty of her, especially when you consider that Agnes has borderline personality disorder, fear of abandonment being a big symptom of it, and Grace was aware that she was diagnosed with it. Regardless, it wasn't kind of her at all, especially with so-called close friends. Another thing was how her selfishness was actually addressed by Raj but then he just apologizes for what he said and it's never brought up again.I did enjoy the book because it was very entertaining. But when I thought about it more and after I read it again, I had a lot of problems with it. I think that is the problem with the current state of "diverse" publishing: we are catered to, in a way, with all kinds of "representation" but it's rather shallow or even riddled with stereotypes. I forgive the author for it because she is a Black woman and these kinds of stories are never available for Black women, much less LGBT Black women. At the same time, is this what we want to settle for? Shouldn't we demand more thoughtful representation rather than throwing it in for the sake of it? This is a general problem with this kind of fiction, which is clearly "chick lit" for LGBT women. "Chick lit" is riddled with issues as well, though it's escapism largely for white women and full of harmful tropes, and it's something that needs to be revamped as well, I think, but that is a whole other discussion.
dilppa_lukulaku's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
rissa_may_read's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
cobaltbookshelf's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to love this book but the writing style was biggest problem for me. I liked queer and mental health representation but that's it.
dietdrama's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
teaguebean's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I finished reading it, then read it again, then crawled into bed at 2 am crying. and I'm telling you this why?
it's terrifying to diverge from "the plan," but sometimes you have to let yourself be grounded back down to earth and be truly vulnerable with not only those who care about you,
but also with yourself.
let yourself shatter
you don't have to pick up the pieces alone
it's terrifying to diverge from "the plan," but sometimes you have to let yourself be grounded back down to earth and be truly vulnerable with not only those who care about you,
but also with yourself.
let yourself shatter
you don't have to pick up the pieces alone
rosebudthom's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
easyvisionary's review against another edition
5.0
I’m in love with this book. How absolutely gorgeous! I got home from being out all day and I was hooked to this book. I had to read it and I had to finish it. I love sapphic love and sapphic stories. This was so sweet.
The climax and fallout of the story was so well written and while you read on hoping for the love to reunite it is really cool to read about the need for Grace’s personal journey. The whole concept of striving for your best in such a restrictive and rigid way is so real to me. It’s so nice to read and get that real perspective around not needing to strive for perfection and be in control all the time. This is something I have been working through over the past year.
I knew from the beginning I was going to love this book and I just wish it went on forever I want to know more. The trope is so clever. The growing to love each other.
The climax and fallout of the story was so well written and while you read on hoping for the love to reunite it is really cool to read about the need for Grace’s personal journey. The whole concept of striving for your best in such a restrictive and rigid way is so real to me. It’s so nice to read and get that real perspective around not needing to strive for perfection and be in control all the time. This is something I have been working through over the past year.
I knew from the beginning I was going to love this book and I just wish it went on forever I want to know more. The trope is so clever. The growing to love each other.