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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
could've been a banger without all the feminism bullshit. not that i'm not a feminist, but the way it's handled in this book is exactly the kind of niche idea of what feminism is instead of actually making good points
Ummmm 3.5* I can understand the mixed emotions/reviews bc I feel the same way. However, I enjoyed it enough to finish it, and to give it at least 3.5 stars so that’s something
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
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
The first thing that pulled me in was Eliza's relationship with her sister. Kim is cold, distant, and a tad bitchy - sort of like my sister.
While I was reading this book, I kept thinking I might be a bit too old for it since the feminism stuff was dealt with in a very high school way (unsurprisingly, it is a YA book, and the characters are, in fact, in high school). However, the romance was cute, and I found the Asian American perspective very interesting. Winnona's film storyline was also pretty relatable ("You won't even have a shot if you don't enter." "Yeah, but then I can't be rejected, either.”)
All in all, a cute, quick read! (3,5 stars rounded down to 3)
While I was reading this book, I kept thinking I might be a bit too old for it since the feminism stuff was dealt with in a very high school way (unsurprisingly, it is a YA book, and the characters are, in fact, in high school). However, the romance was cute, and I found the Asian American perspective very interesting. Winnona's film storyline was also pretty relatable ("You won't even have a shot if you don't enter." "Yeah, but then I can't be rejected, either.”)
All in all, a cute, quick read! (3,5 stars rounded down to 3)
3.5 stars
i genuinely really enjoyed this book, it was fun, it was fast, it was educational, it had rlly good diversity and it was cute. surprisingly, i didn't dislike eliza THAT much, she was an okay character except for some parts where i felt like ripping her apart but while feeling like that, i also understood how and why she dealt with some things but i guess she could have dealt with them a LITTLE better. her character development was nice to see though, i'm glad she changed her perspective on some things.
my favourite character was 100% serena, i love this girl so much. i loved her development and i loved her kindness and the way she finally realised what was wrong and what she really wanted to stand for. i also love how she believed feminism in a totally different way to eliza or winona. she was so cute and just so loveable, she is definitely someone i would love to be bffs with irl
speaking of winona, she annoyed me like 99% of the book, she had really no other thing about her except from hating on serena and making that movie. her being a feminist but constantly hating on serena didn't sit right with me.
the romance between len and eliza was cute, it wasn't phenomenal but it was okay.
her whole family situation, i wish we saw more of it towards the end and we got to see the way things had gone for her sister.
but anyway it was a enjoyable book, i was flying through this before i started studying for my exams but i still enjoyed it nonetheless
i genuinely really enjoyed this book, it was fun, it was fast, it was educational, it had rlly good diversity and it was cute. surprisingly, i didn't dislike eliza THAT much, she was an okay character except for some parts where i felt like ripping her apart but while feeling like that, i also understood how and why she dealt with some things but i guess she could have dealt with them a LITTLE better. her character development was nice to see though, i'm glad she changed her perspective on some things.
my favourite character was 100% serena, i love this girl so much. i loved her development and i loved her kindness and the way she finally realised what was wrong and what she really wanted to stand for. i also love how she believed feminism in a totally different way to eliza or winona. she was so cute and just so loveable, she is definitely someone i would love to be bffs with irl
speaking of winona, she annoyed me like 99% of the book, she had really no other thing about her except from hating on serena and making that movie. her being a feminist but constantly hating on serena didn't sit right with me.
the romance between len and eliza was cute, it wasn't phenomenal but it was okay.
her whole family situation, i wish we saw more of it towards the end and we got to see the way things had gone for her sister.
but anyway it was a enjoyable book, i was flying through this before i started studying for my exams but i still enjoyed it nonetheless
There are unlikable MCs, and full-on jerk MCs. Sadly, Eliza here falls into the latter category.
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
hopeful
tense
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
OH MY GOD THIS WAS SO ADORKABLE
it's the best kind of rivals-to-lovers romance for me: slow, perfectly paced, with both characters actually growing and improving as they get together and with just a dash of that sweet sweet angst. it's the character development that fuels their relationship. len mercifully has a deep respect for eliza from the beginning (thank god because I don't think I'd have got past the first five chapters otherwise, Academic Bros are literally the bane of my existence and I have to deal with enough of them IRL. I'm not saying the guy wasn't kinda entitled at first but he wasn't insufferable and you could see where he was coming from), but his character arc combined with eliza having to look past her preconceived judgements and broaden her horizons without compromising on herself or losing her feminist spunk to meet somewhere in the middle brings out the best version of one of my favourite tropes ever. I NEED MORE ROMANCES LIKE THIS PLEASE
I also really liked how it touched on colourism/antiblackness and the nuances of racism within different communities of colour. the book takes place in a setting with a predominantly east asian demographic, which was honestly really cool and made it a lot more relatable even to me as an indian, at least for a YA book:') the social dynamics were still hella different from here obviously but they did hit closer to home than what I've come to expect from contemporaries set in white-majority us or europe
the strong feminist themes and female friendships at the heart of this book were just the perfect icing on the cake:D
it's the best kind of rivals-to-lovers romance for me: slow, perfectly paced, with both characters actually growing and improving as they get together and with just a dash of that sweet sweet angst. it's the character development that fuels their relationship. len mercifully has a deep respect for eliza from the beginning (thank god because I don't think I'd have got past the first five chapters otherwise, Academic Bros are literally the bane of my existence and I have to deal with enough of them IRL. I'm not saying the guy wasn't kinda entitled at first but he wasn't insufferable and you could see where he was coming from), but his character arc combined with eliza having to look past her preconceived judgements and broaden her horizons without compromising on herself or losing her feminist spunk to meet somewhere in the middle brings out the best version of one of my favourite tropes ever. I NEED MORE ROMANCES LIKE THIS PLEASE
I also really liked how it touched on colourism/antiblackness and the nuances of racism within different communities of colour. the book takes place in a setting with a predominantly east asian demographic, which was honestly really cool and made it a lot more relatable even to me as an indian, at least for a YA book:') the social dynamics were still hella different from here obviously but they did hit closer to home than what I've come to expect from contemporaries set in white-majority us or europe
the strong feminist themes and female friendships at the heart of this book were just the perfect icing on the cake:D