Scan barcode
cj13's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Body shaming, Homophobia, Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Self harm, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy
alisylvi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, Transphobia, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Death of parent and Self harm
darcy124's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
4.75
Loved this book so much! Only gave it a 4.75 instead of a 5-star rating because the beginning took me a while to get into and understand and one scene in the beginning threw me off completely. I think everyone should read this book.
Graphic: Dysphoria, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, and Self harm
aecatec's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
4.5
Graphic: Transphobia and Self harm
valereads's review
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I came into this book knowing very little about the plot itself and I felt that was a good place to start from. For those who do want to know a bit more this book follows two childhood friends, a trans boy called Sam and a girl with roses growing out of her wrists named Miel, as they come to terms with the fact they have fallen in love with each other. While this is happening Sam is just beginning to come to terms with the fact that he is transgender (a fact everybody except him seems to be aware of) and four local sisters are attempting to steal Miel's roses by whatever means necessary. On top of this there is also the mystery of where Miel comes from and what happened to her family that will have any reader intrigued.
There's little more I can say than this book was beautiful. The prose was lyrical and fairy tale-esque, and reading it felt like dreaming. That wasn't always a good thing though. As much as I enjoyed every other element of this novel, and I definitely did, it took me longer than I'd like to connect to the characters. That fairy tale, dreamlike quality to the writing made me feel distant from them. At times I found it easier to connect with the antagonistic Bonner sisters than with the main protagonists.
Overall I enjoyed this book very much. I think McLemore really did capture the trans experience well (no surprise as the author themself has come out as non-binary since writing it). This was my first time reading one of McLemore's books and I look forward to reading more from them in future.
Content Warnings: transphobia, homophobia, misgendering, outing, blackmail, racism, attempted suicide, drowning
There's little more I can say than this book was beautiful. The prose was lyrical and fairy tale-esque, and reading it felt like dreaming. That wasn't always a good thing though. As much as I enjoyed every other element of this novel, and I definitely did, it took me longer than I'd like to connect to the characters. That fairy tale, dreamlike quality to the writing made me feel distant from them. At times I found it easier to connect with the antagonistic Bonner sisters than with the main protagonists.
Overall I enjoyed this book very much. I think McLemore really did capture the trans experience well (no surprise as the author themself has come out as non-binary since writing it). This was my first time reading one of McLemore's books and I look forward to reading more from them in future.
Content Warnings: transphobia, homophobia, misgendering, outing, blackmail, racism, attempted suicide, drowning
Graphic: Bullying, Deadnaming, Homophobia, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Confinement
Moderate: Racism
More...