Reviews with content warning for Incest - Most Ardently

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Reviews tagging 'Incest'

Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

6 reviews

arcticaster's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

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

4.5

I really enjoyed this retelling! It was fun and lighthearted. The author's writing was pretty soothing, it read like a modernised version of the original style, which I enjoyed. Elizabeth's wit and snark in the original Pride and Prejudice was kept pretty true to Oliver as well, he was a very lovable character. I think Darcy was a bit softer in this telling (while he's in his preferred spaces where he can be himself), but it makes sense for him and suited his character well.

As a trans man I definitely felt a lot of sincerity and care written into Oliver. Trans masc folks are all diverse in their experiences and how their dysphoria manifests (if it manifest at all). A good amount of Oliver's dysphoria centres around the feminine clothing he has to wear. I think that was a great representation of the character, it resonated well with just how gendered clothing and etiquette was during the time. As Oliver points out, much of him passing in public is because of his menswear, at that time people wouldn't guess anyone but a man was wearing menswear.

I'm glad there was a good ending for the characters, like the original book. The only thing I thought a bit weird was that Oliver's mom felt a little out of character at the end in order for the ending to be happy. I think she might have needed more convincing or time, but honestly it didn't bother me too much. She's a bit of an unpredictable person by nature so it isn't incredibly far-fetched.
Oliver's dad is the best, I adore him and I LOVE kind, supportive dads in stories, especially queer stories.

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bree_h_reads's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

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

3.25

This was a pretty cute book, though a little flawed.

To start, I loved the narrator. I think they did a great job conveying the emotions of a scene. I also loved the character voices. Each one really suited the character they were given to. Overall, great choice to narrate the audiobook.

I really enjoyed how supportive the people in Oliver’s life were. Perhaps not “historically accurate”, but I didn’t really want that. I think having such a prevalent thing in the book is really good for the YA readers, especially trans readers, this book is meant for to see in media.

I also liked the frequent addressing of how the queer characters should just be allowed to exist as they are. That was part of why the ending appealed to me so much. I like that Oliver gets to live comfortably as himself, even if somethings can’t be public.

I also like how much more was added to Darcy’s first proposal. Oliver’s experience with him when presenting as himself vs when he couldn’t added so many layers to it. Especially Oliver’s internal turmoil in rejecting Darcy, but still letting him know that Darcy’s secrets were safe with him.

Despite how much I liked, I did have issues with the book.

The least of my issues was how quickly Darcy and Oliver fell for each other. The slowburn and pining of the original was very much absent from this book, and it was a bit of a let down. Oliver and Darcy met once and were already taken with each other. While the romance was cute and enjoyable, the speed for its progression took me out of the book. It didn’t help that, intentionally or not, the book presents Darcy as VERY sexist early on.

Darcy is, in general, very cold to exclusively women. Oliver experiences the difference in how Darcy treats people he perceives as women in men PERSONALLY and isn’t put off by it. It rubbed me the wrong way that Oliver was so willing to overlook it. Especially considering he has FOUR sisters and two women as his best friends.

Outside of that the book had a really confusing concept of distance and travel time. It felt like characters were moving at the speed of modern travel instead of how quickly they would actually travel. It took me out of the story quite a bit.

There was also my pet peeve of bad stays and corset rep, but that wasn’t enough to sway my rating.

Overall it was a pretty cute story. Though flawed it’s still worth the read.

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weirdassfanta's review against another edition

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inspiring 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

5.0

I truly believe this book is a wonderful addition to queer retellings and historical fictions. While I admit the ending seemed a tad bit rushed with the quick change of Mrs. Bennet’s attitude towards everything, along with not getting to see how the friendship with Charlotte turned out, I rated this 5 based off of how much I enjoyed the book. It furthers the truth of queer people always existing and showing their lives in 1800s London. I figured something like Molly Houses existed then, but I did not ever see representation of them unfortunately. Seeing Oliver push against the traditions of society and not settling for anything but happiness, despite the risk, was a great and necessary experience. The narrative that pretending to be someone you’re not as a trans person is not true survival is something too many people don’t realize. I haven’t read Pride & Prejudice yet, so I can’t say how accurate it is to the original story, but it’s on my shelf. Either way, a great read showing some truth to the lives of queer people throughout history, as we have always been here.

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kri_29's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

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ghostlyprince's review against another edition

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.5

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peroxide_princes's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was a really great book! I grew up absolutely ADORING Pride and prejudice, so to have a trans retelling out there is just fantastic. I think the end moves a little quickly and feels slightly forced, but that could definitely be my own personal taste. The characters do feel a bit flat,

with the most character development happening in Darcy’s character in my opinion. Though I think Oliver’s parents being supportive of him in the end is a very nice and healing touch out there for many trans kids picking up this book

. Overall, I think perhaps my personal tastes have moved away from young adult fiction, hence my rating, but this book fits itself well in that category. I would certainly recommend it for any trans youth out there who are in need of a book to speak to their souls and give them a heartwarming and hopeful end.

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