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booksandhome's review
I couldn't get into the story. I liked the writing at first but the overuse of imagery in every paragraph really detracts from the pacing and plot.
This is a typical YA read with Good Men and Bad Men.
This is a typical YA read with Good Men and Bad Men.
Minor: Animal death
keen's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I started this book with an intensely negativity mindset for several reasons. 1) I do not like historical books. I find them to be either boring or painful to read. 2) Connecting to 1, historical books that address racism and sexism can be triggering for me, as a trans-masc black person. 3) I simply found the start of the book to be interesting, but boring, disappointing me based on talk about it being adventurous portal fantasy.
I've just finished reading and my heart is tight in my chest. It hasn't made me cry, but it was right on the edge of it. I don't have good words to describe why I liked the story overall. It's more several small parts that built up into me caring deeply about the story. But to summarize:
I've just finished reading and my heart is tight in my chest. It hasn't made me cry, but it was right on the edge of it. I don't have good words to describe why I liked the story overall. It's more several small parts that built up into me caring deeply about the story. But to summarize:
- The racism aspect of the book was what made me immediately connect to January. Both of us struggle with our race being ambiguous, causing people of all races to be unsure of how to approach us. I would've preferred to not focus on it at all, but that would have significantly changed the story. Honestly, I was surprised the author is white. Her depiction of racism was so natural. Better yet, characters of different skin tones are described, not only dark or unnatural skins. I've seen it be far too common that only dark and alien skins will be described, implying that the default skin tone is white and doesn't need to be mentioned for a character description. This was immensely refreshing.
- Similarly, the way mental health and abuse was handled was so realistic that it was actually triggering. I had to put the book down to recover a few times. This was an awful experience for me, but I think this is a bonus to the book. I rather be hurt by how accurately a book portrayed a toxic relationship, causing me to further relate to a character, than to see it handled badly.
- I was pleasantly surprised to see a prominent LGBT character in the story. It's not lingered on long, but it's made explicitly clear. There's also a small mention of a two old men holding hands.
- I can't say that I found Samuel particularly interesting as a character, but I enjoyed him. I wasn't expecting much for a story that's not focused on romance, anyway. Him and January have a nice dynamic, with their relationship not developing in a straight line. Also, he's not Prince Charming. January gets a lot of agency in what she wants. This story has a strong focus on women being courageous and powerful and how those are attractive qualities.
- Above could be said for a lot of the characters in this story. I appreciate that relationships in the book are explicitly complicated. I'm very happy that a story about family and your place in society didn't make relationships one-dimensional. Friendships and family in this book feel so grey that there's not a lot of room on how to handle a situation in a "good" or "bad" way.
Aside from my issue with the slow start to the book, the only had bad thing that stands out to me is how impulsive and reckless January can be. At the same time, that could be said for a few characters, and in the context of the book, it makes sense. Also, she's a teenager, so shouldn't expect some ground-breaking planning skills when going through a terrifying situation.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Racism, Self harm, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Racial slurs
Confinement/Emotional Abuse/Child Abuse Explanation:jkiefer's review
50%. The book was advertised as a fantasy story about traveling to other worlds via doors, but was actually more about the racist politics of the 1920s. It wasn't the book I was expecting to read. I also did not like the heavy handed story-within-a-story aspect. There was also a lot of info dump/heavy exposition.
Graphic: Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Racism and Confinement
Minor: Animal death
melshoo's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Minor: Animal death, Body horror, and Death of parent
tinytrashqueen's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Minor: Racism and Xenophobia
readbymegs's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Racism, and Racial slurs
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