Reviews with content warning for Racial slurs - The Paragon Hotel

Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

The Paragon Hotel by Lyndsay Faye

8 reviews

jennifermreads's review

In my “reading from shelf” goal, I thought for sure this one would be a winner for me: set in 1920s Portland (in my new home state of Oregon), mobsters, found family, racial tension, dual timeline. When I saw that both Kirkus and Library Journal gave it starred-reviews, I thought I was safe and this book would not be a victim of my “I’m in a reading funk” era.

Alas, I made it to page 108 and just could not find a comfortable rhythm as I bounced from present day and the MC’s previous life in Harlem. I never connected with the language and manner of storytelling. I struggled keeping the characters straight in my head—and there were a lot of characters. But ultimately, because of the number of characters, there were so many storylines and I was overly preoccupied wondering which one of the plot points would be the main one. With my semi-slump of so many hits-then-misses, I am sad this is added to the “miss” side of the equation. But, by page 108, there should be some focus.

Content Warnings

book_gremlin42's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

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constancepoplos's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging tense fast-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

3.75

Faye doesn’t shy away from making the reader feel uncomfortable. But that’s the point. She explores racism, sexism, homophobia in a way that feel personal and real. Gripping story following 2 timelines that meet up. Docked her a few points because the writing style with constant “rat-a-tat” etc. feels slightly juvenile and sometimes it’s a bit difficult to follow since Alice is more often than not called Nobody throughout. Overall would recommend this book as a thought provoking read.

Content Warnings

lilmollyjo0301's review against another edition

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slow-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? Yes

3.5

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quasinaut's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful slow-paced

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

4.25

Slow to start and heavy on the 20s slang, but the split stories -- 1910s Harlem with the Mafia and 1920s Portland with the KKK -- are well-developed and ultimately intertwined.

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mandkips's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.25

Content Warnings

abbeyreadthis's review against another edition

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adventurous informative tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Content Warnings

kendra_f's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad 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

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