Reviews

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

readwithmekt's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Juniper has wanted nothing more than to become a best selling author, however it does not seem like that is in the cards for her. That is until the night everything changes, and she is presented with the opportunity to adapt a novel that was never her’s. With resounding success comes critics and trolls, but Juniper is willing to tolerate it and continue on until the ghost of Athena starts haunting her. With her conscious making its appearance will Juniper be able to keep up her story or will her new found success come crumbling down around her? 

 

I have been wanting to get into RF Kuang books for a while and this was on my tbr list, and my book club picked it as our next read. I went in pretty blind and will be honest about not having any idea what the plot was going to be about. I really enjoyed this book. I loved that it was a story about authors and creating their works as well as the challenges attached to getting published. Without giving anything away the ending was by far my favorite part. 

 

Juniper as the main character and I ended up having mixed feelings about. I can fully understand her actions and the decisions that she makes in the beginning of the book. However I do not know if I can fully agree with all of the choices that she makes throughout. Athena was not a traditional character. I loved how I learned about her and the type of person that she was, through flashbacks or other characters talking about her. This is a book for me where I don't know if I really loved any of the characters because there were none that I felt had redeeming qualities. 

 

I felt I was waiting for the shoe to drop throughout the entire book. I will be honest and say that I did not want people to get away clean, I wanted there to be repercussions. 

 

The narrator Helen Laser did an amazing job with the book. I found her voice incredibly enjoyable to listen to and I enjoyed the different tones and accents that she used when speaking as different characters. This was a book that was an interesting read and I was able to easily follow the plot lines and did not get characters confused. 

 

With medium pacing and chapter lengths that varied I found it easy to quickly listen. Overall I did enjoy this book and I am excited to read other books by RF Kuang. I am excited to see what my other book club members have to say. If you enjoy books with morally gray characters and that are about books and publishing this is definitely a book that you should add to your trb. 

stle's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

issyaarmstrong's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

loraleicanread's review against another edition

5.0

i think this is an amazing satire exploring plagiarism, racism, and the internet bandwagon. 

it was fascinating to see june’s justifications for her actions evolve over time, until eventually she genuinely believed she was the true victim. but then who was the victim? june was targeted on social media, but didn’t she deserve it because she blatantly stole the voice of her dead friend? was the story she stole even either one of theirs to tell? was there a right person to tell the story? is there a right person to tell any story?

personally, i think waiting until later in the book to include

the fact that athena stole june’s sexual assault story is interesting. it brings back the question, “who is allowed to tell this story?” would june have told it? would it make a difference coming from june, rather than athena? is athena’s “crime” worse than june’s, due to the intimate nature of the story? is june’s crime worse than athena’s, due to the much larger scale?

if you like bunny by mona awad, you’ll probably enjoy this book. 

ashwaar's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

tesko's review against another edition

challenging dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

abjasp's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

whatsemmyreading's review against another edition

5.0

This book was so good! I wasn’t sure what I was expecting going in (a commentary on cancel culture, I think), but I ended up with a semi horror story that had smart commentary and it was so good. This book was one that I feel like I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

dawnurse's review against another edition

3.0

Is the publishing world really like this?

I appreciated the satire of the story. It makes you realize how much our society depends on and feeds off of social media.

viachu888's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5