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clarkg's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Cursing, and Grief
Moderate: Abandonment, Vomit, and Transphobia
Minor: Cultural appropriation and Hate crime
joensign's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Transphobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Homophobia, and Drug use
americattt's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia and Death
kleinekita's review
4.0
I wanted more conclusion, but shouldn't have expected it from those book. I feel like I'll want to read this again.
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
seventhswan's review
- 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? It's complicated
3.25
That said, the various settings in the book really came to life and shone. I enjoyed reading the descriptions of the various places and the queer communities there, as well as the minor characters that popped in and out of Paul’s life.
I’ve accepted by now that magical realism just isn’t for me and I tried not to let my personal preference affect my review when I knew there would be magical elements going in. But… what did Paul’s shapeshifting really add to the story that couldn’t have been achieved by just making him a genderfluid or non-binary character?
Overall I didn’t dislike this book, it was a well-paced read stacked with queer culture and I don’t regret reading it - I just thought I would enjoy it more than I ended up doing.
Graphic: Alcohol and Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Death and Racism
james1star's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
Whilst above is the main plot, it’s in many ways a love letter to the nighties. Lawlor infuses many references to the music, tv and film, books, art and other parts of the culture with a strong focus on queer creators which I revelled in. They at times list these mentions and I had to do so too because the decade was a time of great change with many facets to discover. What’s also great is the inclusion of time-specific mentions as we’re following queer characters and their lives in a time of queer-phobia and the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the eighties following into the early nighties. The best part for me was from the pages 273-278 where Paul is thinking back to his time spent in New York with an old partner as they worked with AIDS organisations and it was just exceptional: the topic, what happened and in a sense the anger and injustice present in that little passage was so hard hitting and despite the theme I loved it.
The book definitely had things to say and messages to put across but they’re cheapened by what I found to be my main criticism of the book. And that’s the hyper fixation on sex. I liked how sex positive and freeing I guess it was to start but when the same things are basically rehashed multiple times it gets boring and rather crude too. Paul’s sexual encounters and ‘victories’ were focused on far too much and it took me out of the story. It’s also clear Lawlor put more detail and emphasis on this then the other passages and descriptions which aren’t bad but I could tell a divide.
Overall, I would recommend this and it’s rather unique but the real meaning and crux of what the author was trying to portray and say was definitely cheapened by what happens for most of the book. It got better as it went along but what had already happened was too much to not allow any higher rating then I’ve given it. It’s possible on a re-read I might get more but unlikely.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse, Lesbophobia, Terminal illness, Death, Homophobia, Hate crime, Grief, Drug use, and Cursing
golpesar818's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Moderate: Sexual content, Homophobia, Alcohol, and Drug use
eegray's review
- 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
sexy
eternal
Moderate: Alcohol
bronzeageholly's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol, Transphobia, Homophobia, and Drug use
artstitute's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Terminal illness
Minor: Vomit, Homophobia, and Stalking
The AIDS epidemic is referenced and discussed.