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jessicaludden's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Maybe part of fighting the unhappiness in this world is to seize happiness when we can.”
This was adorable and fun and just full of teenagers being messy and I loved it. I loved watching Ever grow to love herself and her culture. It was amazing to finally see her fight for the things she wants while still appreciating the fight her parents have put in for her to have this life. I loved the found family aspect and all the relationships. Of course some characters were annoying and honestly Ever is way more forgiving than I would’ve been, but this book did a great job summing up what it’s like to be young and not know what you’re doing. Don’t take it too seriously and just enjoy the ride.
This was adorable and fun and just full of teenagers being messy and I loved it. I loved watching Ever grow to love herself and her culture. It was amazing to finally see her fight for the things she wants while still appreciating the fight her parents have put in for her to have this life. I loved the found family aspect and all the relationships. Of course some characters were annoying and honestly Ever is way more forgiving than I would’ve been, but this book did a great job summing up what it’s like to be young and not know what you’re doing. Don’t take it too seriously and just enjoy the ride.
Content Warnings
Minor: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Blood, Car accident, Alcohol, Animal death, and Racism
courtnoodles's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Violence, Sexual content, Vomit, and Infidelity
Moderate: Medical content, Sexual assault, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Self harm, Suicide attempt, and Racism
Minor: Racial slurs and Blood
heatherjchin's review against another edition
DNF at 60% — 50% then 10% at the end.
I got through half this novel before reading some reviews and spoilers because I had to see if all the guesses I had for the story trajectory and character development would come true and yup, they would. And actually ended up worse than I’d imagined. So I jumped to the end and decided to count this as a full Read here to give myself credit for reading through what turned out to be a trope-filled, caricature-heavy, shallow, problematic relationships on all levels, and unrootable-for protagonist novel.
The author does a good job with capturing the headiness and messiness of adolescence and young adulthood, and the emotional struggle between personal and parental dreams, but I couldn’t get past the framing of a lot of toxic relationship dynamics and decisions as just mistakes, excusable, not needing accountability or even to be taken seriously.
I also feel like readers who are not from the Chinese American and Asian American communities would find this more entertaining than many of us who live with the weight of these stereotypes daily.
I got through half this novel before reading some reviews and spoilers because I had to see if all the guesses I had for the story trajectory and character development would come true and yup, they would. And actually ended up worse than I’d imagined. So I jumped to the end and decided to count this as a full Read here to give myself credit for reading through what turned out to be a trope-filled, caricature-heavy, shallow, problematic relationships on all levels, and unrootable-for protagonist novel.
The author does a good job with capturing the headiness and messiness of adolescence and young adulthood, and the emotional struggle between personal and parental dreams, but I couldn’t get past the framing of a lot of toxic relationship dynamics and decisions as just mistakes, excusable, not needing accountability or even to be taken seriously.
I also feel like readers who are not from the Chinese American and Asian American communities would find this more entertaining than many of us who live with the weight of these stereotypes daily.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Car accident, Cursing, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Blood, Classism, Mental illness, and Sexual content
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