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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
okay so this was so funny and felt a bit like that scene in a romantic comedy where the whole family/friend group cram into the same car to go and get the love interest back. it was so nice to read a book set in New Zealand and for a book with dual POVS to have both equally fleshed out and interesting!
I love a messy, funny family drama. It's very Shameless (US) in the best way possible (even better because the references are NZ/AU so I actually get them). I really enjoyed both the main characters, can't say I would necessarily be friends with Greta but Valdin, we would be besties. Both were such relatable, genuinely funny and real characters, which I appreciated. I also obviously appreciated the queer representation in this book, not just openly gay main characters, but queer women who struggle with their sexuality and sometimes go on dates with men, family members married to women who dable in sexual relationships with men, interracial relationships, age gap relationships (but its not really that problematic for once), pansexual representation and overall a very accepting and progressive family! We love to see all of that represented in mainstream media!
My only gripe with this book seems to be a common one. There are so many damn characters with very similar names which makes it so difficult to keep up AND I KNOW theres a name guide at the front of the book but I did not find myself wanting to flip back and forth every time a person was mentioned (which was literally every page). I got a bit confused at times because V, Vlad, and Vlad (Linsh) are all different people. Theres Greta and Greta and Gep and Gen and AH confusing! Over all though, fun, low stakes and unserious and that was definitely needed right now.
Quotes I liked:
-'I don't like reading about pain and trauma, I have the Al Jazeera app for that.'
-'I don't really feel like anything these days, just a beautiful husk filled with opinions about globalism and a strong desire to go out for dinner.'
-'I'm not very good at telling people how I feel. I don't know why I'm like that and I don't always love to think about all the tiny pieces of me that add up to make a whole person. I feel concerned that too many of the pieces have something a bit wrong with them.'
My only gripe with this book seems to be a common one. There are so many damn characters with very similar names which makes it so difficult to keep up AND I KNOW theres a name guide at the front of the book but I did not find myself wanting to flip back and forth every time a person was mentioned (which was literally every page). I got a bit confused at times because V, Vlad, and Vlad (Linsh) are all different people. Theres Greta and Greta and Gep and Gen and AH confusing! Over all though, fun, low stakes and unserious and that was definitely needed right now.
Quotes I liked:
-'I don't like reading about pain and trauma, I have the Al Jazeera app for that.'
-'I don't really feel like anything these days, just a beautiful husk filled with opinions about globalism and a strong desire to go out for dinner.'
-'I'm not very good at telling people how I feel. I don't know why I'm like that and I don't always love to think about all the tiny pieces of me that add up to make a whole person. I feel concerned that too many of the pieces have something a bit wrong with them.'
funny
lighthearted
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This family is odd and cute and gay and chaotic! There were some great tender and funny moments that made me smile widely. I think maybe the cast is too large - I often had to look back at the list of characters in the beginning when I got lost. Overall it was enjoyable!
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
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
Really honestly hilarious. I would say I relate to these characters so much- social anxiety, trouble with relationships, communication problems- but I'm not this funny and my family is not this interesting. I wish I could live in these characters minds for even longer, so this might get a reread
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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:
Complicated