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panickat123's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This plot twist was so good 😱 I’m honestly probably just slow and didn’t see it coming which Happens a lot with thriller/mysteries but damn this book got me. Loved it. Also on audio, it has all the bg noises like doorbells, phone chimes, knocks, all incorporated into it and that was new for an audiobook and it really brings you into the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Child death, Grief, Classism, Murder, and Racism
Moderate: Rape, Abortion, Pedophilia, Abandonment, Suicide, Alcohol, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Cancer, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Blood
haley49's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- 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
3.5
I really wanted to love this book more than I did. The premise was great and the mystery was amazing.
However, having a book advertised as the black queen and having her be murdered and then centering her self-centered white counterpart was a disservice. If it was marketed as a girl coming to terms with her internalized racism while attempting to find out who really killed her rival for queen would have been much more honest and engaging. Instead there is a focus on a rushed redemption arc for our main character with a side plot of the victim’s painful backstory. In the end I understand and like our fmc but I feel so bad for the victim and her story gets used a bit for another’s character development.
On the other hand, Duchess’s character was really interesting. I just wish we saw a bit more of her. It was advertised as her book!
However, having a book advertised as the black queen and having her be murdered and then centering her self-centered white counterpart was a disservice. If it was marketed as a girl coming to terms with her internalized racism while attempting to find out who really killed her rival for queen would have been much more honest and engaging. Instead there is a focus on a rushed redemption arc for our main character with a side plot of the victim’s painful backstory. In the end I understand and like our fmc but I feel so bad for the victim and her story gets used a bit for another’s character development.
On the other hand, Duchess’s character was really interesting. I just wish we saw a bit more of her. It was advertised as her book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Racism
Moderate: Abortion, Pedophilia, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Toxic relationship
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.5
This wasn't bad, but it wasn't what I was hoping for and I wouldn't say it was good. I liked the reveal of the killer. I didn't care to follow Tinsley for the majority of the book. It was a story with potential but the execution, with the exception of the reveal, was quite meh for me. It was so focused on the redemption of the white girl (and the scandals of the white people in the book) I feel it lost what should be one of the takeaways- black girls/women being the victims of society and how everyone needs to do better so it doesn't keep happening. So would've preferred more focus on the black characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Murder, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, Medical content, Grief, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racism, Bullying, Death, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Sexual assault, Abortion, Rape, and Sexual violence
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.75
This was a great book. For once the person I suspected of being the murderer wasn't the murderer, none of my suspects were. And most of what I'd figured out was kinda flipped a bit at the end. I was still right on some parts but not most of it.
I really liked how Tinsley finally figured out that you don't have to be overtly racist to be racist. And how Duchess and her friends didn't take any of her shit. The characters weren't all lovable but they were real, which I think is more important. They weren't all horribly unlikable either which is something that would have made me put down the book immediately.
Overall an amazing book! With two excellent narrators.
I really liked how Tinsley finally figured out that you don't have to be overtly racist to be racist. And how Duchess and her friends didn't take any of her shit. The characters weren't all lovable but they were real, which I think is more important. They weren't all horribly unlikable either which is something that would have made me put down the book immediately.
Overall an amazing book! With two excellent narrators.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Grief, and Racism
Moderate: Alcohol, Medical content, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Murder, and Pedophilia
Minor: Child abuse, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault
katebrownreads's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Toxic friendship, Death, Murder, and Racism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Abortion
bookstarbri's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm a bit torn between 3.5 and 4 so we're just going to go with 3.75!
So there were a lot of things in this I really enjoyed. For one, I think Jumata Emill did a great job with characterization. These characters all felt very real to me and the dilemmas they faced and their behaviors were so perfectly executed. Their motivations were clear and who they are to their core was clear as well. I also loved the plot of this. I'm always a big fan of murder mysteries and so reading this and having one that was equal parts heartbreaking as it was twisty was really great. I loved Nova. Though she's dead, her presence is really felt throughout the entire book and she is her own character, especially as we learn more about her life and the struggles she went through. Honestly, she was probably my favorite character in all of this, despite her not actually being a living figure for the majority of the story.
That being said, there were some bits I didn't love. For one, the slang in here was interesting. Sometimes it felt like natural slang and sometimes it felt very forced. Some of it also felt really old for the age of the characters. Then, I had a lot of issues with Tinsley's character arc. I was expecting her to grow on me by the end of the book and she just...didn't. She said and did some really awful things in the beginning and though she definitely got better by the end, it just didn't feel like she fully earned her redemption. There were some other aspects of this that I didn't love, but I don't know how to fully explain those.
Anyway, I'll also say that I guessed the really big plot twist pretty early on and since I had, I wasn't too surprised by the ending. However that didn't really stop me from enjoying reading it all unfold, but it wasn't quite as twisty and shocking as I would've liked.
Despite those things though, this was a good read and I think it's an especially important one for all the social commentary it makes. Thanks so much to Writers House and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
So there were a lot of things in this I really enjoyed. For one, I think Jumata Emill did a great job with characterization. These characters all felt very real to me and the dilemmas they faced and their behaviors were so perfectly executed. Their motivations were clear and who they are to their core was clear as well. I also loved the plot of this. I'm always a big fan of murder mysteries and so reading this and having one that was equal parts heartbreaking as it was twisty was really great. I loved Nova. Though she's dead, her presence is really felt throughout the entire book and she is her own character, especially as we learn more about her life and the struggles she went through. Honestly, she was probably my favorite character in all of this, despite her not actually being a living figure for the majority of the story.
That being said, there were some bits I didn't love. For one, the slang in here was interesting. Sometimes it felt like natural slang and sometimes it felt very forced. Some of it also felt really old for the age of the characters. Then, I had a lot of issues with Tinsley's character arc. I was expecting her to grow on me by the end of the book and she just...didn't. She said and did some really awful things in the beginning and though she definitely got better by the end, it just didn't feel like she fully earned her redemption. There were some other aspects of this that I didn't love, but I don't know how to fully explain those.
Anyway, I'll also say that I guessed the really big plot twist pretty early on and since I had, I wasn't too surprised by the ending. However that didn't really stop me from enjoying reading it all unfold, but it wasn't quite as twisty and shocking as I would've liked.
Despite those things though, this was a good read and I think it's an especially important one for all the social commentary it makes. Thanks so much to Writers House and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Bullying
Moderate: Racial slurs, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Cancer, Sexual assault, Infidelity, and Abortion
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