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apollinares's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I listened to this audiobook sandwiched between A Psalm For The Wild Built (my new favourite hopepunk/solarpunk book) and A Conjuring Of Light (the third installment in a trilogy that was left on a cliffhanger), so it was bound to get a lower rating from me due to bad timing alone. Still, some parts were... just horrible, and it brought the rest of the book down for me.
Things I liked:
- The food descriptions: I love how immersive the author got with the food, and how it provided a backdrop for character growth to take place.
- Pacing: this is once of those books where each chapter is titled "time before xyz". I like the use of titles and timing to establish what the character fears or looks forward to, and build tension towards a climactic event.
- The characters themselves: we've got a rag tag found family that's just full'o flaws, but loveable regardless. I mean, what other book features a trust-fund-kid-turned-addict help save a kitchen from impending bankruptcy?
- Queer love: it's in there,it works out , I like that. It was very "at first sight" which some people may find tacky, but I'm a romantic at heart.
- Core message: pushed on a bit too strongly/obviously, butan anticapitalist book! We love to see it!
Things I didn't like:
- "forced" diversity: maybe I'm using the wrong term, but a few times in the book, I felt stating certain things was unnecessary. At one point, the protagonist witnesses a trans chef get a promotion, and is briefly confused over the chef's gender identity (basically going "why did [the person in charge] say "he"? Oh, he must be transitioning genders!" in his head). That chef is never mentioned again, so it felt almost unnecessary. The protagonist's skin is also drawn attention to quite a lot, like, "he could feel the sun on his dark skin" - I almost felt like the author was showing off/rubbing in how progressive of him it was to make the protagonist a POC. Luckily, no food references or fetishy similes regarding the skin ("the color of chocolate" or whatever), but still.
- Attitude to slavery: one of the characters was sold into slavery with his family by a great-great-relative, to pay off debt. At one point,the protagonist has a fight with him about this, because "at least [the character in slavery] received regular meals, had comfortable sleeping quarters, etc" . The book's message is an anticapitalist one, and the protagonist does say most of the things he said in anger (after months of isolation with just this other character), and apologises for his words almost immediately after because he thinks them through, that transition of mindset felt... quick, and feels antithetic to the overall plot and message. I don't know, something rubbed me the wrong way about it, especially because to my knowledge, the author is white.
- Erotica: just not my cup of tea. It got pretty descriptive at some point, in a fanfiction-y sort of way, and I cringed every time.
- The ending: I just. Ew. Complete disregard for trauma, since the character spends ?? 8 years in slavery ? and he IS a person of color so that feels very not right for a white author to write about, as part of the "best case scenario/resolution", even if it did work out in the end.
Final thoughts:
A decent, easy enough read where the characters are fun, flawed, and the plot is engaging. The ending feels under-thought, and overall the book feels like it oversimplifies+dismisses a LOT of current issues.
Another thing that has to be said is that (for me at least) the narration's quality often makes or breaks my ability to truly enjoy the story. This one was stellar. James Fouhey has that ability to do voices that doesn't seem parodic or overly infantilising, and I found myself smiling at it often.
Things I liked:
- The food descriptions: I love how immersive the author got with the food, and how it provided a backdrop for character growth to take place.
- Pacing: this is once of those books where each chapter is titled "time before xyz". I like the use of titles and timing to establish what the character fears or looks forward to, and build tension towards a climactic event.
- The characters themselves: we've got a rag tag found family that's just full'o flaws, but loveable regardless. I mean, what other book features a trust-fund-kid-turned-addict help save a kitchen from impending bankruptcy?
- Queer love: it's in there,
- Core message: pushed on a bit too strongly/obviously, but
Things I didn't like:
- "forced" diversity: maybe I'm using the wrong term, but a few times in the book, I felt stating certain things was unnecessary. At one point, the protagonist witnesses a trans chef get a promotion, and is briefly confused over the chef's gender identity (basically going "why did [the person in charge] say "he"? Oh, he must be transitioning genders!" in his head). That chef is never mentioned again, so it felt almost unnecessary. The protagonist's skin is also drawn attention to quite a lot, like, "he could feel the sun on his dark skin" - I almost felt like the author was showing off/rubbing in how progressive of him it was to make the protagonist a POC. Luckily, no food references or fetishy similes regarding the skin ("the color of chocolate" or whatever), but still.
- Attitude to slavery: one of the characters was sold into slavery with his family by a great-great-relative, to pay off debt. At one point,
- Erotica: just not my cup of tea. It got pretty descriptive at some point, in a fanfiction-y sort of way, and I cringed every time.
- The ending: I just. Ew. Complete disregard for
Final thoughts:
A decent, easy enough read where the characters are fun, flawed, and the plot is engaging. The ending feels under-thought, and overall the book feels like it oversimplifies+dismisses a LOT of current issues.
Another thing that has to be said is that (for me at least) the narration's quality often makes or breaks my ability to truly enjoy the story. This one was stellar. James Fouhey has that ability to do voices that doesn't seem parodic or overly infantilising, and I found myself smiling at it often.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexual content, Classism, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Mental illness, Slavery, Suicide attempt, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Torture, and Violence
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