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swifterel22's review
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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
3.25
althea's review
1.0
1.5/5 Stars
I hate writing negative reviews, especially for queer books and books by debut authors, but this one was such a disappointment. It follows Sabine as her, her twin sister Blythe, and their mother leave everything behind to move into a ramshackle old mansion with a stranger named Charlie, who just happened to show up in the hospital room when their dad died. Sabine, curious to find out what’s been going on, does some snooping and finds more secrets than she bargained for.
I had such high hopes for this book – the main character has a bisexual dad, polyamorous parents and it discusses HIV (although, despite whoever shelved it as sapphic on Goodreads – it definitely isn’t), which are three things you rarely see in books, particularly in YA. Plus, the premise sounds interesting – the main character is obsessed with poetry, and their father’s legacy sounds so intriguing – but sadly it completely missed the mark for me.
I’m going to start with one of the biggest disappointments of the book for me – the main character, Sabine. Her ‘poeting’, aka randomly spouting lines of poetry, often at inappropriate moments, but always related to the situation at hand, was fun and quirky at first, but soon lost its merit, and it often felt harsh and stand-offish when she began quoting Dickinson right after she had been very rude to her best friend. Speaking of being rude to her best friend, Sabine was just a horrible person. I like unlikeable protagonists and I can appreciate a horrible villain, but Sabine was something else completely (this is where it’s gonna get spoilery). Sabine and her family move into Charlie’s crumbling mansion, that he’s had part of it redone for them, and she is constantly so horrible to him. Her mum never told her what was going on, despite Charlie encouraging her to tell Sabine and her sister, but instead of confronting her mum about it, she decided to steal Charlie’s possessions, break into his house and just make life miserable for him. The house was being re-modeled into a temporary safe-house for LGBT people, which was something that Sabine soon finds out, was both Charlie and her dad’s dream. This particularly makes sense when Sabine finds out that her dad is bisexual and was in a polyamorous relationship with both Charlie and her mother, and that her dad died from an HIV-related illness. But Sabine hates this idea, and is so extremely selfish about her whole situation, going so far as to do everything in her power to stop the project from continuing and causing all of them to almost go without a home. But it’s not after hearing that how her dad died, or from seeing the work Charlie does to help those living with HIV/AIDS, or after visiting an HIV/AIDS memorial that Sabine decides to change her mind and help Charlie with the house, no, it’s after (and I’m seriously not exaggerating here, if it weren’t an ARC I’d include the whole quote) she finds out that her best friend (that Sabine had previously potentially got into a very dangerous situation) isn’t allowed to use her sewing machine in her gran’s house that she realises people may need somewhere else to stay. Yes, really. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg – she’s horrible to her twin sister, her supposed boyfriend and her best friend multiple times throughout and somehow ends up on good terms with them all by the end.
The synopsis also suggests that Sabine’s twin, Blythe, might play a bigger role in the story than she did – what with her supposed obsession with her father’s alma matter. But we barely see any of her in the book, and what we do see of her has…you guessed it…nothing to do with whatever it was their dad did.
But it gets worse. Although I am neither bisexual nor poly, the representation of both of these identities felt like a combination of just about every stereotype in the book. Throughout the book, after Sabine finds out her dad was in a polyamorous relationship, she blows the whole situation out of proportion. Her mum was supposedly not happy with the whole situation but would rather marry Sabine’s dad while he was also with Charlie or not marry him at all, and it’s quite often hinted at throughout the book by both Sabine and her mother, that her dad was selfish, didn’t love them and that Sabine’s mum was almost forced into having their marriage this way – yet it was all consensual and there was no cheating at all. It was not an accurate representation of the loving, communicative poly relationships I have seen – and I think the bisexual rep and the HIV rep was even more damaging.
Near the end of the book Sabine confronts Charlie and asks if it was because of him that her dad died of his HIV related illness (first of all, big yikes) and Charlie tells her that when her dad was younger he slept around a lot because he lived in the South, which wasn’t very accepting, and so was looking for that acceptance elsewhere, playing into the stereotype that both bisexual people, and people with HIV/AIDS, are promiscuous and sleep around a lot. There is absolutely no work done in this book to combat the harmful stereotypes around these communities, which would have been so important to see in a YA book that is obviously marketed towards younger readers, but instead it continued to perpetrate these ideas. There is also no discussion on the fact that it is not just queer people who contract HIV/AIDS, and so, inadvertently (at least I hope it’s not on purpose), plays into that extremely dangerous stereotype too. I am well aware that this is still an unfinished ARC and that these portrayals may change by the final copy, but judging by how they impact the plot, I would guess there would only be minor changes.
Although this book was not the greatest, to say the least, I did really enjoy myself when I started reading this book, and strangely enough I think it got me out of my reading slump (here’s hoping). I can see how this book would appeal to younger readers and the author’s writing style is really beautiful, so I am interested to read her future work. But, overall, this is not a book that I would recommend, particularly if you’re looking for good bisexual/polyamorous/HIV rep (but if you are looking for that give me a shout!).
Thanks to Edelweiss and Soho Press for an eARC copy in return for an honest review
I hate writing negative reviews, especially for queer books and books by debut authors, but this one was such a disappointment. It follows Sabine as her, her twin sister Blythe, and their mother leave everything behind to move into a ramshackle old mansion with a stranger named Charlie, who just happened to show up in the hospital room when their dad died. Sabine, curious to find out what’s been going on, does some snooping and finds more secrets than she bargained for.
I had such high hopes for this book – the main character has a bisexual dad, polyamorous parents and it discusses HIV (although, despite whoever shelved it as sapphic on Goodreads – it definitely isn’t), which are three things you rarely see in books, particularly in YA. Plus, the premise sounds interesting – the main character is obsessed with poetry, and their father’s legacy sounds so intriguing – but sadly it completely missed the mark for me.
I’m going to start with one of the biggest disappointments of the book for me – the main character, Sabine. Her ‘poeting’, aka randomly spouting lines of poetry, often at inappropriate moments, but always related to the situation at hand, was fun and quirky at first, but soon lost its merit, and it often felt harsh and stand-offish when she began quoting Dickinson right after she had been very rude to her best friend. Speaking of being rude to her best friend, Sabine was just a horrible person. I like unlikeable protagonists and I can appreciate a horrible villain, but Sabine was something else completely (this is where it’s gonna get spoilery). Sabine and her family move into Charlie’s crumbling mansion, that he’s had part of it redone for them, and she is constantly so horrible to him. Her mum never told her what was going on, despite Charlie encouraging her to tell Sabine and her sister, but instead of confronting her mum about it, she decided to steal Charlie’s possessions, break into his house and just make life miserable for him. The house was being re-modeled into a temporary safe-house for LGBT people, which was something that Sabine soon finds out, was both Charlie and her dad’s dream. This particularly makes sense when Sabine finds out that her dad is bisexual and was in a polyamorous relationship with both Charlie and her mother, and that her dad died from an HIV-related illness. But Sabine hates this idea, and is so extremely selfish about her whole situation, going so far as to do everything in her power to stop the project from continuing and causing all of them to almost go without a home. But it’s not after hearing that how her dad died, or from seeing the work Charlie does to help those living with HIV/AIDS, or after visiting an HIV/AIDS memorial that Sabine decides to change her mind and help Charlie with the house, no, it’s after (and I’m seriously not exaggerating here, if it weren’t an ARC I’d include the whole quote) she finds out that her best friend (that Sabine had previously potentially got into a very dangerous situation) isn’t allowed to use her sewing machine in her gran’s house that she realises people may need somewhere else to stay. Yes, really. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg – she’s horrible to her twin sister, her supposed boyfriend and her best friend multiple times throughout and somehow ends up on good terms with them all by the end.
The synopsis also suggests that Sabine’s twin, Blythe, might play a bigger role in the story than she did – what with her supposed obsession with her father’s alma matter. But we barely see any of her in the book, and what we do see of her has…you guessed it…nothing to do with whatever it was their dad did.
But it gets worse. Although I am neither bisexual nor poly, the representation of both of these identities felt like a combination of just about every stereotype in the book. Throughout the book, after Sabine finds out her dad was in a polyamorous relationship, she blows the whole situation out of proportion. Her mum was supposedly not happy with the whole situation but would rather marry Sabine’s dad while he was also with Charlie or not marry him at all, and it’s quite often hinted at throughout the book by both Sabine and her mother, that her dad was selfish, didn’t love them and that Sabine’s mum was almost forced into having their marriage this way – yet it was all consensual and there was no cheating at all. It was not an accurate representation of the loving, communicative poly relationships I have seen – and I think the bisexual rep and the HIV rep was even more damaging.
Near the end of the book Sabine confronts Charlie and asks if it was because of him that her dad died of his HIV related illness (first of all, big yikes) and Charlie tells her that when her dad was younger he slept around a lot because he lived in the South, which wasn’t very accepting, and so was looking for that acceptance elsewhere, playing into the stereotype that both bisexual people, and people with HIV/AIDS, are promiscuous and sleep around a lot. There is absolutely no work done in this book to combat the harmful stereotypes around these communities, which would have been so important to see in a YA book that is obviously marketed towards younger readers, but instead it continued to perpetrate these ideas. There is also no discussion on the fact that it is not just queer people who contract HIV/AIDS, and so, inadvertently (at least I hope it’s not on purpose), plays into that extremely dangerous stereotype too. I am well aware that this is still an unfinished ARC and that these portrayals may change by the final copy, but judging by how they impact the plot, I would guess there would only be minor changes.
Although this book was not the greatest, to say the least, I did really enjoy myself when I started reading this book, and strangely enough I think it got me out of my reading slump (here’s hoping). I can see how this book would appeal to younger readers and the author’s writing style is really beautiful, so I am interested to read her future work. But, overall, this is not a book that I would recommend, particularly if you’re looking for good bisexual/polyamorous/HIV rep (but if you are looking for that give me a shout!).
Thanks to Edelweiss and Soho Press for an eARC copy in return for an honest review
danielvicens's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
booktrunks's review
1.0
Synopsis: Sabine Braxton and her twin Blythe are thrown into a whole new world when their father unexpectedly passes away. After they move in with a man named Charlie who seems to have known their father well, they do some digging and find out that Charlie was their father’s lover, and everything they knew about their family has changed. They have to navigate grief and change together while trying to continue in this new life.
_________________________________
Thoughts: This is just not at all the book I thought I was going to be reading unfortunately, and I decided to DNF it at about 40%. I couldn’t get behind the treatment of the kids by the parents and Charlie at all (telling your children you’re on business trips all of the time but actually you’re seeing your boyfriend just isn’t cool in my book, no matter the circumstances), and I didn’t care to see if the book would try to continue justifying the behavior until the end. I’ve seen a lot of reviews about the main character being unlikable in the second half, and whether or not that’s true I think she deserves some slack, because her dad just died of an illness the parents decided not to tell her he had, she was forced to move immediately after to a school where she had no friends, move in with a man she doesn’t know at all, and get told she’s mean and stubborn whenever she expresses any discomfort with the situation. I do think that a book about healthy polyamorous relationships could be written in YA, but in no way, shape, or form could the setup and situation in this book be considered a healthy way to do so while involving the kids. Just not the book for me.
_________________________________
Thoughts: This is just not at all the book I thought I was going to be reading unfortunately, and I decided to DNF it at about 40%. I couldn’t get behind the treatment of the kids by the parents and Charlie at all (telling your children you’re on business trips all of the time but actually you’re seeing your boyfriend just isn’t cool in my book, no matter the circumstances), and I didn’t care to see if the book would try to continue justifying the behavior until the end. I’ve seen a lot of reviews about the main character being unlikable in the second half, and whether or not that’s true I think she deserves some slack, because her dad just died of an illness the parents decided not to tell her he had, she was forced to move immediately after to a school where she had no friends, move in with a man she doesn’t know at all, and get told she’s mean and stubborn whenever she expresses any discomfort with the situation. I do think that a book about healthy polyamorous relationships could be written in YA, but in no way, shape, or form could the setup and situation in this book be considered a healthy way to do so while involving the kids. Just not the book for me.
liralen's review
3.0
It's time for a Pet Conspiracy Theory!
My (pet conspiracy) theory about this book is that it was originally intended to be middle grade, with a protagonist (& co.) who was twelve or thirteen. Somewhere along the line, somebody decided that it wasn't 'appropriate' to have a MG book that discussed polyamory/non-monogamy, and so the characters were aged up (and given driving licenses and more romance) without making major changes to the plot. It doesn't explain why the adults treat HIV like a dirty secret that Sabine and Blythe can't know about (it's 2021, ffs; this is not okay), but it might explain why S&B think that the only way to find out about Charlie's project is to break into his apartment instead of, you know, looking it up on their smartphones. They have literally all the information they'd need to do that, but, you know. If they're actually twelve, skipping this logical step might make a bit more sense. (Maybe. I haven't been twelve in quite some time. Twelve-year-olds these days seem pretty surgically attached to their phones. Buuuut so do sixteen-year-olds, so...) It also might explain the sort of magical-thinking solution at the end, which involves. That really is the sort of thing that I'd expect to see in MG: emphasis on saving the family from something; a little over the top; an unrealistic solution for a twelvesixteen-year-old to pull off but one she does anyway. It's fine in MG. It's a little weird in YA.
My (pet conspiracy) theory about this book is that it was originally intended to be middle grade, with a protagonist (& co.) who was twelve or thirteen. Somewhere along the line, somebody decided that it wasn't 'appropriate' to have a MG book that discussed polyamory/non-monogamy, and so the characters were aged up (and given driving licenses and more romance) without making major changes to the plot. It doesn't explain why the adults treat HIV like a dirty secret that Sabine and Blythe can't know about (it's 2021, ffs; this is not okay), but it might explain why S&B think that the only way to find out about Charlie's project is to break into his apartment instead of, you know, looking it up on their smartphones. They have literally all the information they'd need to do that, but, you know. If they're actually twelve, skipping this logical step might make a bit more sense. (Maybe. I haven't been twelve in quite some time. Twelve-year-olds these days seem pretty surgically attached to their phones. Buuuut so do sixteen-year-olds, so...) It also might explain the sort of magical-thinking solution at the end, which involves
Spoiler
hundreds of thousands of dollars of fines that the protagonist has helped inflict on her own house being waved away with the magic of a little bit of blackmaillibrarypatronus's review
3.0
Thank you to Netgalley and Soho Press for the advanced reader's copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Polyamory, HIV and discussions about safe sex with a positive partner, wrapped up in an emotional storyline.
This had a lot of things I really liked, but just didn’t catch me how I’d hoped.
Sabine has dealt with the unexpected loss of her father, a move to a new town, and things seem to be going downhill from there. She’s made a cool friend and found a new crush, only to realize he’s her new BFF’s crush too. The man her mother has moved them in with is suspicious to her, and Sabine is determined to find out who he really is. She’s also dealing with “poeting”, when she’s anxious she spouts off lines of poetry compulsively. The town doesn’t want to put through the permit on their house, and Sabine doesn’t blame them - she’s convinced if she can sabotage her mother & Charlie’s efforts, she won’t need to live there anymore.
This reminded me a little of Hot Dog Girl, in that Sabine takes questionable action to try to get something done herself, and she doesn’t seem to get many consequences. She’s obviously confused and scared, and I can see why, but she doesn’t treat the people around her (family, friends) very nicely at all.
I loved the diverse characters, and I’d definitely read more from this author in the future.
Polyamory, HIV and discussions about safe sex with a positive partner, wrapped up in an emotional storyline.
This had a lot of things I really liked, but just didn’t catch me how I’d hoped.
Sabine has dealt with the unexpected loss of her father, a move to a new town, and things seem to be going downhill from there. She’s made a cool friend and found a new crush, only to realize he’s her new BFF’s crush too. The man her mother has moved them in with is suspicious to her, and Sabine is determined to find out who he really is. She’s also dealing with “poeting”, when she’s anxious she spouts off lines of poetry compulsively. The town doesn’t want to put through the permit on their house, and Sabine doesn’t blame them - she’s convinced if she can sabotage her mother & Charlie’s efforts, she won’t need to live there anymore.
This reminded me a little of Hot Dog Girl, in that Sabine takes questionable action to try to get something done herself, and she doesn’t seem to get many consequences. She’s obviously confused and scared, and I can see why, but she doesn’t treat the people around her (family, friends) very nicely at all.
I loved the diverse characters, and I’d definitely read more from this author in the future.