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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I am a Becky stan as always! This was not my fave of hers and I liked Imogen better but I love this new vein she’s tapped into where she explores online culture and queer discourse while delivering a cute queer romance. If I were a critic my star rating would be a tad lower but this gets points for pure enjoyment, I sped through this.
As in Imogen online subcultures are explored with a lot of nuance! There’s compassion for all sides, even if one side is shown to be much more respectful.As a recovering shipper I was immediately like “Is this play about us?” as the clear inspos for Drama Clash seem to be Phan and Larry! I think more could have been said about these cultures a) if the book was longer, b) if we got any other perspectives other than Walter’s and Amelia’s. It could have been interesting to have Amelia be a shipper and then learn to take Walter at his word. Or to have some shippers not be nameless unknown people but to hear their perspectives. I did like the acknowledgement that more often than not shippers are queer kids struggling to see themselves, even though it’s still not okay to hound real people to give you that representation.
I really liked Walter’s character, he felt so real and definitely like someone who would be a compelling Internet personality and someone I would wanna be friends with.And him and Mark at the end, cute stuff.
The bits and pieces of online media we got to see were awesome glimpses into that world.I got a real thrill realizing for the first
time that some of these were from
Walter’s perspective when his mentions/DMs are shown.
Amelia I didn’t like as much as Imogen. Her constant joking got annoying at times. I did love the deeper reflections she got into about time and change. But her character growth didn’t come across clearly to me.She doesn’t have to grow to meet Walter where he’s at. To get with Nat she basically just has to realize she’s in love and be a bit brave - but not so much cause Nat initiates? There’s no clear apology for how much she shits on Claire and how uncomfortable that has made Nat. And the realization of her love happens pretty quickly, even though the signs are always there. The conflict with Nat is really unsatisfying, and Amelia doesn’t have to learn to stop hiding behind jokes, really, although that’s alluded to. When Zora points out her fear of change, she sits with it for a second and then seems to recover and understand very quickly, even though you see earlier how badly she wants to keep the friendgroup together!
I did appreciate Amelia as awkward bubbly kid representation! And her characterization felt distinct. But I think she could have grown more if there was more time and more situations that forced her to sit with her feelings!
It was cool to see Albertalli take on a character who already knows she’s bi but similarly to Imogen has had cycles of questioning, and isn’t always aware of the nature of her feelings. Relatable! Coming out isn’t the end of questioning!
I did find the dialogue and jokes less cringe than in Imogen 😂 or when they were cringe, it made sense for Amelia’s character.
I also, unlike in other connected YA books I’ve read this year (namely A Scatter of Light and Last Night At the Telegraph Club/Sunrise on the Reaping and the main Hunger Games series) quite enjoyed how this story was connected to Imogen’s! Everything felt natural, plausible and not shoehorned in. Which might just be a testament to how much I was enjoying the reading experience.
I would eat up another Imogenverse book, I love getting to explore fandom, the internet and the nuances of being queer while meeting a cute queer friendgroup and seeing first queer love bloom. There’s something healing about the queerness in these books.
As in Imogen online subcultures are explored with a lot of nuance! There’s compassion for all sides, even if one side is shown to be much more respectful.
I really liked Walter’s character, he felt so real and definitely like someone who would be a compelling Internet personality and someone I would wanna be friends with.
The bits and pieces of online media we got to see were awesome glimpses into that world.
time that some of these were from
Walter’s perspective when his mentions/DMs are shown.
Amelia I didn’t like as much as Imogen. Her constant joking got annoying at times. I did love the deeper reflections she got into about time and change. But her character growth didn’t come across clearly to me.
I did appreciate Amelia as awkward bubbly kid representation! And her characterization felt distinct. But I think she could have grown more if there was more time and more situations that forced her to sit with her feelings!
It was cool to see Albertalli take on a character who already knows she’s bi but similarly to Imogen has had cycles of questioning, and isn’t always aware of the nature of her feelings. Relatable! Coming out isn’t the end of questioning!
I did find the dialogue and jokes less cringe than in Imogen 😂 or when they were cringe, it made sense for Amelia’s character.
I also, unlike in other connected YA books I’ve read this year (namely A Scatter of Light and Last Night At the Telegraph Club/Sunrise on the Reaping and the main Hunger Games series) quite enjoyed how this story was connected to Imogen’s! Everything felt natural, plausible and not shoehorned in. Which might just be a testament to how much I was enjoying the reading experience.
I would eat up another Imogenverse book, I love getting to explore fandom, the internet and the nuances of being queer while meeting a cute queer friendgroup and seeing first queer love bloom. There’s something healing about the queerness in these books.
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Chaque roman de Becky Albertali est une nouvelle surprise. J'entre dedans en me disant que je connais ce qu'elle écrit, que se sera bien mais que j'aurais peut être pas un coup de cœur, mais la magie de l'autrice marche a chaque fois. Et a chaque fois je tombe amoureuse des personnages et je les aime profondément et on se retrouve en eux.
Seul problème, c'est que les éditeurs français aient arrêté de traduire ses romans. Une déception de plus pour l'édition française mais pas une surprise... C'est quand même étrange que se soit ses livres qui parlent d'expériences vécues par des personnages sapphic qui ne soit pas traduit mais bon...
Merci a Netglley de m'avoir permis de lire ce livre en avant première.
Seul problème, c'est que les éditeurs français aient arrêté de traduire ses romans. Une déception de plus pour l'édition française mais pas une surprise... C'est quand même étrange que se soit ses livres qui parlent d'expériences vécues par des personnages sapphic qui ne soit pas traduit mais bon...
Merci a Netglley de m'avoir permis de lire ce livre en avant première.