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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
I expected more from this, to be honest.
I saw this get a lot of attention on bookstagram, so I was very excited to get an ARC of it. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations. Maybe I should've gone in with no expectations, but after seeing it talked about so much, I couldn't help it. I'm not usually one for mystery books, so that might be part of the reason I didn't like it that much, but I was hoping this would get me more interested in the genre.
I loved the format of this book. The confessions at the beginning of each chapter added a lot to the story. I was also glad to have flashbacks, usually right after they were mentioned in the previous chapter.
I did enjoy the characters a lot. It was amazing to see a large cast of asian characters. I was also pleasantly surprised to see some queer characters too. I liked seeing how the friend group interacted, especially in such a high stakes situation. I think that the characters were fairly well developed and their backstories were really interesting. I thought that they were also well written as teenagers. A lot of the time, teenagers are often written very stereotypically, but these ones were very accurate.
My main issue was that it just wasn't that exciting. The mystery just wasn't that... mysterious. It was also really confusing. The ending felt like it wasn't developed enough throughout the book for it to actually make sense. There wasn't really anything to look back on and find hints or foreshadowing to actually make sense of the resolution. The ending explanation felt like a bit of a cop out to me. As if it hadn't been explained it would've made no sense.
Overall, it was still a really quick read, and I did have a lot of fun.
I saw this get a lot of attention on bookstagram, so I was very excited to get an ARC of it. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations. Maybe I should've gone in with no expectations, but after seeing it talked about so much, I couldn't help it. I'm not usually one for mystery books, so that might be part of the reason I didn't like it that much, but I was hoping this would get me more interested in the genre.
I loved the format of this book. The confessions at the beginning of each chapter added a lot to the story. I was also glad to have flashbacks, usually right after they were mentioned in the previous chapter.
I did enjoy the characters a lot. It was amazing to see a large cast of asian characters. I was also pleasantly surprised to see some queer characters too. I liked seeing how the friend group interacted, especially in such a high stakes situation. I think that the characters were fairly well developed and their backstories were really interesting. I thought that they were also well written as teenagers. A lot of the time, teenagers are often written very stereotypically, but these ones were very accurate.
My main issue was that it just wasn't that exciting. The mystery just wasn't that... mysterious. It was also really confusing. The ending felt like it wasn't developed enough throughout the book for it to actually make sense. There wasn't really anything to look back on and find hints or foreshadowing to actually make sense of the resolution. The ending explanation felt like a bit of a cop out to me. As if it hadn't been explained it would've made no sense.
Overall, it was still a really quick read, and I did have a lot of fun.
dark
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
I really appreciated the focus of this book showing the unique circumstances of Asian American students at an elite private high school, especially as it relates to class, but I found the climax a little unearned and underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Racism, Classism
mysterious
fast-paced
I didn't expect much from this book given that it was advertised to have the same vibe as One of Us is Lying (which I did not like one bit). I also have a hard time loving contemporary thrillers/mysteries, like The Silent Patient (still, hands down to its plot twist) But when I saw How We Fall Apart's intriguing cover during the BBW fair, I told myself I had to read it.
The story goes like this: The "perfect" queen bee of Sinclair Prep Jamie Ruan drops dead after a scandal about her father has gone out and the main suspects are her four former friends. Throughout the events we're given the perspective of Nancy Luo—scholarship student, daughter of Jamie's housekeeper, and one of four of Jamie's former friends. There's also this Proctor who somehow knows their dark secrets and keeps threatening to expose them online, making it difficult for Nancy to trust even the people close to her.
I was hooked the first half even though I found it to be underwhelming at times. It was a page-turner and it was pretty fast-paced. A good enough book to keep me entertained. But. It was kind of cliche. And the part that I was most disappointed in—the culprit's, or the Proctor's, reveal by the end. It was blatantly nonsensical and I was in disbelief the whole time, not because I was shocked, but because I found it to be absurd. Really absurd! It threw me off so badly. So this book was so-so. But if there were a possibility of a sequel, I would read it. And also, I wouldn't recommend this book to someone who wants to read serious mysteries or thrillers, but if you're in for the vibes, I think you'll enjoy this!
The story goes like this: The "perfect" queen bee of Sinclair Prep Jamie Ruan drops dead after a scandal about her father has gone out and the main suspects are her four former friends. Throughout the events we're given the perspective of Nancy Luo—scholarship student, daughter of Jamie's housekeeper, and one of four of Jamie's former friends. There's also this Proctor who somehow knows their dark secrets and keeps threatening to expose them online, making it difficult for Nancy to trust even the people close to her.
I was hooked the first half even though I found it to be underwhelming at times. It was a page-turner and it was pretty fast-paced. A good enough book to keep me entertained. But. It was kind of cliche. And the part that I was most disappointed in—the culprit's, or the Proctor's, reveal by the end. It was blatantly nonsensical and I was in disbelief the whole time, not because I was shocked, but because I found it to be absurd. Really absurd! It threw me off so badly. So this book was so-so. But if there were a possibility of a sequel, I would read it. And also, I wouldn't recommend this book to someone who wants to read serious mysteries or thrillers, but if you're in for the vibes, I think you'll enjoy this!
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
plot is predictable and the characters are all kind of annoying
It's One of Us Is Lying, but at a prestigious prep school and features Asian teens dealing with hyper-competitive parents and racism. Good read, I like the perspective, but the mystery plot was not groundbreaking.
fast-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
