Reviews - Siren Queen | The StoryGraph

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casually magical and strange. the world building is vague and feels very “vibe” based to the point that i almost reads as metaphorical (allegorical?) rather than an established system. this strategy of uncertainty could work for the benefit of the novel, but, in this case, i think it detracts.

this world building issue in combination with the lack of emotional focus made this a bit of a boring read. it’s unclear who and what we are truly meant to care most about. what is lilu truly yearning for? this was highlighted for me with the split emotional climax,

half with her sister in san francisco and half with emmaline on set.

it was also felt with the character of greta who comes and goes, yet is involved with the highest point of action in the story. everything felt like glimpses rather than a cohesive emotional arc.

additionally, the framing of jane as one of lilu’s greatest artistic collaborators and loves made me wish we got that story instead.

there were many beautiful ideas (the dolls in particular i LOVED). however, moments aren’t enough to carry the story for me.

Content Warnings

elwynsitter's review against another edition

4.0

Sparkling with silver limned prose and alive with beating ambition. A morsel of delight to sink your teeth into.

mthereader's review against another edition

3.5

dark medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

tkhongmaly's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny reflective tense fast-paced

This was a very enjoyable magical realism take on Hollywood. I’ll admit I don’t actively care about the history of Hollywood, especially as an Asian American, but this was a very fun tale and commentary on it all. May we all be such monsters as in this story.

goranlowie's review

4.0

SIREN QUEEN is a dark work. It starts very familiar, an old tale we’ve heard many tales before—a young actress wants to make it in the world of Hollywood. I almost forgot I was reading a genre work and figured this would simply be a literary feminist work about a Chinese-American woman trying to make a name for herself in a world that’s notoriously not that great towards Chinese people or women.

The fantastical elements enter the story slowly, and remain there until the end, but they never take the forefront or become a major part of the story. It’s simply there. You get no explanation, no context, it doesn’t even really feel like it has any kind of logic (or perhaps some fairytale-logic). I found myself intrigued by some of the magical laws that were clearly a part of this world yet were never illuminated on. It made for a mysterious read.

It's a delightful reimagining of old time Hollywood. Almost reads like the memoir of a gender-swapped Christopher Lee starting his career at Hammer films, with a bigger focus on anti-racism, anti-misogynism, queer representation and the like.

I wish people wrote more fantasy-infused stories of Hollywood. It’s a rather unique setting, a kind of urban fantasy that worked well for me, even though I’m not big on the genre.

DISCLAIMER: I received an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

hannahanolik's review against another edition

3.5

dark emotional mysterious tense 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: No

I feel like I need to read an analysis of this book to fully get all the themes and meanings, but overall offers some really cool views on the time period and place, and makes you think about how love can look different for everybody, what you’d sacrifice for love and fame, and how society sees some people as heroes and villains just because of who they are and how they perpetuate that or fight it