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laurensilva's review
- 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
2.75
On the other hand, I wish I liked the writing style more so I could give more stars to this otherwise fun read. My main peeve here is the overly twee, conversational style. Especially in the first few chapters, the writing was so cringey (ex. the excessive use of "Argh." and "I'm down for platonic friendship, yeah. I'm chill. Totes chillax.") to the point where it became distracting from the scene I was trying to read. There’s so much of it so early on - before we even reach the murder - that I barely even have the encouragement of “what happens next???” to keep reading. Still, I held on (skimmed) so I could get to the meat of the book.
I was also disappointed by all the “I’m so tiny I can be picked up so easily!!! Oh men think I’m so tinyyyy.” There were three references to this in as many pages!!! We get it, Asian girls can be small, but let's move on from hitting us over the head with this physical description as a character trait.
Graphic: Death and Car accident
Minor: Racism and Vomit
rhall19's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Alcohol and Death
Minor: Vomit and Racism
percervall'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
4.0
Graphic: Murder and Sexual assault
Moderate: Vomit, Alcohol, and Drug use
Minor: Sexual content, Xenophobia, and Violence
morahsharon1's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Maybe it's just that I so dislike the trope of " none of this would have happened if anyone actually talked!"
I understand that Sutanto was trying to capture the culture of "anything for family" along with the idea of cultural and familial pressure, but really?
Yes there was love there, but so much disfunction!
The main character was super immature and didn't function/think as an adult.
Graphic: Alcohol, Car accident, Gaslighting, Murder, Cursing, Death, and War
Minor: Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Vomit
pookiee's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment and Car accident
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug use, Sexual content, and Murder
Minor: Vomit, Racism, Infidelity, and Blood
passionatereader78's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Car accident, Death, and Murder
Minor: Vomit and Drug use
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Death, and Drug use
Moderate: Bullying, Car accident, Gun violence, Murder, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Blood, Body shaming, Classism, Confinement, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Vomit
fromthefoxhole's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I love that this book is romantic and swoony as the b plot, that the familial love and hilarity takes center stage. It gives so much more breathing room to the romance, and really highlights how life changing it can be to grow up and realize that yes, your family can drive you mad, but oftentimes it's out of love and hope. If I'm being honest, the aunties stole the show for me, even though they're technically secondary characters.
Something about Sutanto's writing made their personalities so vivid, by the end of the book I feel like I could pop into any of their homes for a quick cup of tea or bite to eat.
This is my favorite book I've read so far this year, and easily leapt to my top ten I've read ever. *insert that lady Gaga gif where she's listing accolades*
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, and Cursing
Minor: Sexual content, Racism, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Vomit, and Death of parent
thiasgomez's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Car accident, Death, Drug use, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol and Toxic relationship
Minor: Racism, Vomit, Gun violence, and Kidnapping
hdoomk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Vomit and Car accident
Minor: Sexual content, Death, and Sexual assault