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susannaobrien's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
There was lots to like about this book: the attempt at non-monogomous representation, the critique of the British empire particularly from an Irish perspective, the absolute reading of privileged Oxbridge and public school educated white folk (particularly men) living in bubbles of ex-pat communities which were amazingly cutting and accurate, and some of the more astute observations about figuring life out in your twenties away from loved ones.
However I found the narrator pretty insufferable and I often couldn't understand her decisions (I don't mind not agreeing with them, but I thought her personality and ideas were quite inconsistently applied and not explored well enough). The love stories were quite unbelievable and oddly resolved which was disappointing given the potential of this queer poly narrative. And the use of language as an artistic device was tedious in the TEFL scenes.
Although I think the lack of cultural details about Hong Kong speaks to the limited view ex pats get of their host country, I do still agree with criticisms that this book somewhat adds to harmful Hong Kong stereotypes.
I'd still be interested in more works from Naoise Dolan, but this didn't work for me.
However I found the narrator pretty insufferable and I often couldn't understand her decisions (I don't mind not agreeing with them, but I thought her personality and ideas were quite inconsistently applied and not explored well enough). The love stories were quite unbelievable and oddly resolved which was disappointing given the potential of this queer poly narrative. And the use of language as an artistic device was tedious in the TEFL scenes.
Although I think the lack of cultural details about Hong Kong speaks to the limited view ex pats get of their host country, I do still agree with criticisms that this book somewhat adds to harmful Hong Kong stereotypes.
I'd still be interested in more works from Naoise Dolan, but this didn't work for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm
megold12's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I really enjoyed this book and the writing style. The way the characters communicate and the flow of conversations was fun and engaging. I struggle on whether to give this a 4.5 or 5 because the part I started to not care for was the main character. You’re in the main characters head the whole time, and by the end she really started to annoy me with how little she was changing or growing - repeating the same habits and internal monologues that were very self-pitying. However, that was also the point, and so the author appeared to do a very good job of getting that across. The main character just grew tiresome for me and I wished for more dialogue between characters than internal monologues by the end of the book
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Self harm
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