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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
literally my fav book ever. i've read it upwards of 15x in the last two years. its queer, its jewish, set during the first chicago worlds fair, murder mystery, ghosts? what more could you want.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really liked this book, I listened to it over audiobook (which I highly recommend). I thought it was very mysterious and had me on the edge of my seats at some points. It also felt realistic in a lot of ways, and I enjoyed being able to learn a bit about this culture/the historical time period (since I know the author made an effort to weave in historical events and the prejudices at this time).
I would have given it a 5 star rating, however I found it very tedious to finish; usually it only takes me a few days to finish an audiobook, but this one took at least a week. I'm not really sure why it felt that way, I think maybe because a lot of the book is kind of a slow burn reveal and it is not very fast paced. I found myself not having that same addictive drive that I do to read some books, which dampened my experience a little.
All things considered it was a good book, just hard to get through at points.
I would have given it a 5 star rating, however I found it very tedious to finish; usually it only takes me a few days to finish an audiobook, but this one took at least a week. I'm not really sure why it felt that way, I think maybe because a lot of the book is kind of a slow burn reveal and it is not very fast paced. I found myself not having that same addictive drive that I do to read some books, which dampened my experience a little.
All things considered it was a good book, just hard to get through at points.
dark
mysterious
Content warnings: child sexual abuse, violence, gore, antisemitism, racism
This book is gay af, mysterious, and atmospheric to the core. I adored it. It's not always an easy thing to read but it is an important story. Jewish main characters and Jewish stories are sorely needed, even in 2021.
My only criticisms are that 1) I feel like it could have been a bit shorter and 2) I probably would have enjoyed the audiobook version better because there are phrases in Yiddish, German, Russian, and Romanian that would translate better in my own head that way.
Thank you to NetGalley for a preview copy in exchange for an honest review.
This book is gay af, mysterious, and atmospheric to the core. I adored it. It's not always an easy thing to read but it is an important story. Jewish main characters and Jewish stories are sorely needed, even in 2021.
My only criticisms are that 1) I feel like it could have been a bit shorter and 2) I probably would have enjoyed the audiobook version better because there are phrases in Yiddish, German, Russian, and Romanian that would translate better in my own head that way.
Thank you to NetGalley for a preview copy in exchange for an honest review.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
This was a bit slow to start for me but once I got about 60% of the way through, the action really picks up and it became really difficult to put down. Despite the slow start for me, this was overall really engaging and I loved that it was a narrative voice that we don't get to see much of. I appreciated the deep commitment to showing a culture that's underrepresented in YA, and showing it in such a rich, full way. The author also weaves in real-life events (the Chicago World's Fair and the Cold Storage Fire of 1893, the latter of which I didn't know anything about before) and educates the reader very matter-of-factly on what life was like during that time. This book is dark/violent and frequently deals with very heavy topics, including a sexual assault and lot of on-the-page antisemitism, so reader beware.
I don't really know what I was expecting out of this but it definitely exceeded my expectations. I guess because it's YA which I have become quite jaded with, but it doesn't have the immaturity that I've come to loathe with a lot of YA. It's a very mature, very serious and dark book that covers some very heavy topics. I loved the historical parts and Jewish cultural aspects, a lot of which were new to me.
4.5
4.5
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A dark, rage filled, beauty of a novel that’s balanced with moments of hope and young queer love. Even though I felt the pacing was a bit slow and there were some missed opportunities for characterization that would lead to a bigger emotional impact, I still really liked the story as a whole. Those smaller issues didn’t detract from the story for me.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
This was a beautiful story wrapped into an exciting plot. I really loved the depth of Jewish culture. It didn’t scream YA novel, which I think is very impressive. Some of the character interactions and development could have been stronger, but I wholly enjoyed the book.
This is a gorgeous novel about love and vengeance and religion and faith and the immigrant experience and the labor movement and being Jewish. Full of compelling and interesting characters, this story of a man possessed by a dybbuk in 1893 Chicago is also about the kind of romance you can have with a place, and as a reader who loves Chicago (and has read so, so many books set in New York as if New York is the only US city for historical fiction,), I thoroughly enjoyed running from the stockyards to the lake to the tenements to the mansions of the rich alongside the protagonists. And while there are thousands of books out there that deal in magical realism or the supernatural, it's much rarer to read works where the supernatural elements are distinctly Jewish, and author Polydoros has created a fantastic ghost story drawn from Ashkenazi folklore.