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fkshg8465's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Bullying, Alcoholism, Car accident, Stalking, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Alcohol, Child death, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Cancer, Deportation, Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
desjas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Child death
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual harassment, and Domestic abuse
toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I feel like this was a solid read, but it could've been *epic.* It had all the elements there, but it never seemed to really take off. I thought the writing was great even though it was pretty simplistic and I enjoyed the dual timelines, though Margot as a character truly bored me to tears and I didn't feel like she had a personality. Still, it was hard for me to predict what would end up contributing to the fate of Mina Lee, and I liked that, even though all of the things that did happen to contribute to it fell flat for me in the end or were flat out anti-climactic.
Though I did like this author's writing, there was a ton of repetition that could've been edited down. The entire premise of this book hinges on the death of Margot's mother, but I felt like the author kept wanting to remind us of that fact. So many sentences started or ended with something like "since her mother's death." I feel like as a writer, you need to trust that the people who are reading your book are going to remember such a major plot point.
Something I thought was done right in this book was capturing grief, understanding that there are things we will never know about the people we love or perhaps never understand about them, but loving them anyway. Overall, a decent book, but there are things I would've liked to see done differently.
Graphic: Child death, Racism, Sexual harassment, Vomit, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Death of parent, Sexual content, Rape, Alcohol, Death, War, Xenophobia, Sexual assault, Murder, and Gun violence
Moderate: Car accident, Infidelity, and Addiction
Minor: Homophobia, Police brutality, and Child abuse
lain_darko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Racism, and Stalking
Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and War
adoesetfree's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I found the writing an odd mix of threadbare and try-hard (if this book asks me ONE more rhetorical question....) The story itself didn’t give me what I wanted, often skipping right over the things I was interested in seeing. The explorations of how complex mother-daughter relationships can be, how patriarchy affects women, and life as a Korean-American immigrant were thorough, but not especially intuitive or engaging; I wonder if maybe the author took on too many topics at once, particularly for a debut novel.
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Sexism
wai's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Cancer, and Child death