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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Genre: YA Coming of Age/ Fantasy
This was not what I thought it was going to be. The first half is mostly a contemporary coming of age with fantasy dreams. There is Vietnamese mythology mixed in and the fantasy part picks up at the end. I wanted more of the fantasy world and less of the high school setting.
fast-paced
adventurous
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC!
So... as I say this, please keep in mind, that I read an ARC, and things may have been more refined by the time it's actually published.
My main thing is that I wasn't invested in the story, like at all. The idea was great, but the execution wasn't really there. I'm not sure if I just wasn't feeling it, or if it was the writing, or what it was. It didn't help that any plot twist was insanely predictable. I also noticed some inconsistencies, but, again, this was an ARC.
I liked maybe one of the characters, and he wasn't even one of the main characters. I didn't connect to the characters and all of their arcs felt very basic. I definitely didn't like the main character. I'm not entirely sure why, but I just didn't care about her.
So, this was okay. I really hope it's had more work done since the ARC I received.
So... as I say this, please keep in mind, that I read an ARC, and things may have been more refined by the time it's actually published.
My main thing is that I wasn't invested in the story, like at all. The idea was great, but the execution wasn't really there. I'm not sure if I just wasn't feeling it, or if it was the writing, or what it was. It didn't help that any plot twist was insanely predictable. I also noticed some inconsistencies, but, again, this was an ARC.
I liked maybe one of the characters, and he wasn't even one of the main characters. I didn't connect to the characters and all of their arcs felt very basic. I definitely didn't like the main character. I'm not entirely sure why, but I just didn't care about her.
So, this was okay. I really hope it's had more work done since the ARC I received.
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
The Lost Queen by Aimee Phan is a first person YA contemporary fantasy retelling the story of the Trưng sisters. After a freakout the previous year, Jolie Lam has lost her old friends, Daphne and Lana, and is going through high school as an ostracized loner. When she saves Huong, a popular new student from Vietnam, after an accident at the school pool, Huong takes a liking to her. Their friendship will be the beginning of the end of a story centuries in the making.
I rarely comment on covers, but I feel compelled to talk about this one, especially after finishing the book. The purple and yellow color scheme matches the colors associated with Huong and Jolie, respectively, and are the two colors that appear the most often in the text. The dragons are the brothers of the Trưng sisters and the bright white castle has a traditional Vietnamese structure that draws the eye to the center without overwhelming any of the other pieces. My favorite part is the magical girl-esque composition, especially with the bottom of the cover being a reflection that features a modern setting and Jolie’s current life.
The rest of this review is not spoiler free
A major theme is toxic friendships and finding out who you can trust after someone has wormed their way into your life and destroyed your other relationships. I think a lot of people want obvious red flags when finding abusers, but some people are extremely good at hiding it and people who are trusting or lonely can miss obvious signs. Isolated, compassionate people are often targeted for a reason and it’s never their fault. I think it’s great for YA to explore these themes with friendships, not only romance, because friendships can be just as destructive and abusive as a romantic or familial relationship. I thought something was weird was going on, but it took a long time for me to start seeing any signs and I suspect that the centuries of waiting played a part in how well so much was hidden.
I really appreciated how there was a bit of a history lesson at the beginning of the book regarding the tensions between the Han and Vietnam and then expanded out to highlight tensions between some other Asian nations, though not in detail. I wasn’t surprised at all that some of the students of Asian descent drew lines and started treating each other with distrust as the impact of these historical events can have far-reaching consequences and it was rarely just one conflict, but was often a series of them. Things are often skipped in world history classes and a focus on European history is, unfortunately, common, so taking the time to spell this out a bit will help readers who are unfamiliar with the history of Vietnam will have a bit more background to better understand the significance of the Trưng sisters.
Content warning for abusive friendships
I would recommend this to fans of contemporary fantasy retellings and readers of YA looking for biracial leads exploring complex topics
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
my favorite aspect of this book is the vietnamese representation especially the history and mythology surrounding the trung sisters. It was interesting to learn about some vietnamese folklore especially as a vietnamese american myself. it was delightful to see vietnamese culture as a core characteristic of this book’s plot especially with the usage of vietnamese words and mention of vietnamese dishes such as thit kho! I also love that the book is set in the bay area!!
the animated writing and imagery is strong in this book but sometimes the detailed writing was unnecessary. i notice the author would overdescribe the smallest details that ends up being useless to the overall plot which would contribute to the turtle pacing.
anyways, the idea of the book sounded better than how the book was executed in my opinion. the author’s writing has potential but the plot was just too dreadfully slow.
Thank you NetGalley for my e-arc. All opinions are my own.
Overall, I think it was a solid book.
I would have loved this book if I was younger and looking for a fantasy book that represented me. The best parts of the book were the different Vietnamese myths and lore. Really interesting take on the Trung Sisters myth and not what I was expecting but I took it for what it was.
Vietnamese words were sprinkled in at the start but then kind of dropped off halfway through with only Ong Nói and Ba Nói being the consistent words. I think it would have been nice to have more.
I had a few standout chapters that I loved but then everything else was a little flat, including the characters. The pacing was off, and some plot points I thought were too convenient and unbelievable. There was too much bullying for my liking, it wasn’t revealed why until later but during those parts I found it difficult to go on because it was constant. The ending was also quite rushed, I didn’t really get it.
Overall, I think it was a solid book.
I would have loved this book if I was younger and looking for a fantasy book that represented me. The best parts of the book were the different Vietnamese myths and lore. Really interesting take on the Trung Sisters myth and not what I was expecting but I took it for what it was.
Vietnamese words were sprinkled in at the start but then kind of dropped off halfway through with only Ong Nói and Ba Nói being the consistent words. I think it would have been nice to have more.
I had a few standout chapters that I loved but then everything else was a little flat, including the characters. The pacing was off, and some plot points I thought were too convenient and unbelievable. There was too much bullying for my liking, it wasn’t revealed why until later but during those parts I found it difficult to go on because it was constant. The ending was also quite rushed, I didn’t really get it.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
*ARC via netgalley
I tried to enjoy this, I really did. Unfortunately, I have decided to drop the book halfway through. I wanted to give it a chance until the plot mentioned in the summary happened but now that it finally came together about 50% in, I’m not inclined to finish it after all. I was interested to learn more about vietnamese mythology but the pacing was so slow that I couldn’t get a grasp on what was even going on (probably because even Jolie didn’t understand what happened).
challenging
slow-paced
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The mythological aspects are the best part of this book. The way it's written, though, makes it really hard to separate the visions from the reality, which I'm sure is the point, but it was jarring to read. I'm also just really burnt out on mean girls, so that made it harder to enjoy. I did not like Huong's friends or Jolie's ex-friends.
This is a slow-moving book with lots of bullying, which is not a fun combination for me. I loved certain parts and was so annoyed by others.
Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.
This is a slow-moving book with lots of bullying, which is not a fun combination for me. I loved certain parts and was so annoyed by others.
Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.