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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Very intriguing story with complex family relationships and secrets. Well written, a page turner.
The Selena concert was my favorite part!
The Selena concert was my favorite part!
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I may revisit my rating at a later time, but I'm rating this book 2 stars (ok) for now.
The best part of Malas was the gorgeous cover. So many high reviews mention the Selena references in the book. While I also loved them (they were definitely a highlight of the story), it makes me wonder what their ratings would have been if those were not included.
Malas started off strong but quickly turned into a book that just didn't work for me. I've read a lot of dual POV or dual timeline books, and they work well when the parts enhance one another and deepen your understanding of the story. Unfortunately, I felt like the dual timelines/POV's were so disjointed in Malas that they felt like they were parts of separate books. Fuentes could have potentially made the story feel more seamless if she had written a 1950's preface and then switched to the 1990's. The 1950's parts read like adult fiction, but the 90's sections were very angsty and felt more YA. Case in point: There is a part in the 90's POV with a lot of detail in and leading up to a scene, but then Fuentes jarringly wrote (of the character), "We had sex. Twice." I wasn't looking for a sex scene per se, but it was written in such a juvenile way, especially after there was a largely unnecessary scene of fellatio earlier in the book. That's how the book read for me: too much detail in some areas and not enough in others.
I honestly found this book confusing in multiple scenes, which was why I struggled with it the most. I literally read through scenes twice and still wasn't able to make complete sense of them. I would have chalked it up to Fuentes' use of magical realism and leaving things open ended to set up for reveals later in the story, but that couldn't even totally explain the obfuscating writing. For example,one of the main characters tries to drown a puppy. Why? I still have no idea. That was one of the most confusing scenes. Also, there is a part where a baby is found and/or abandoned. Again, I read that scene probably 3 times and still couldn't entirely makes sense of it.
I may bump this up to 2.5 stars, rounded to 3 upon further consideration or after my book club discussion if the book makes more sense to me at that point. As of now, I found it too confusing and disjointed to say I liked it (3 stars).
The best part of Malas was the gorgeous cover. So many high reviews mention the Selena references in the book. While I also loved them (they were definitely a highlight of the story), it makes me wonder what their ratings would have been if those were not included.
Malas started off strong but quickly turned into a book that just didn't work for me. I've read a lot of dual POV or dual timeline books, and they work well when the parts enhance one another and deepen your understanding of the story. Unfortunately, I felt like the dual timelines/POV's were so disjointed in Malas that they felt like they were parts of separate books. Fuentes could have potentially made the story feel more seamless if she had written a 1950's preface and then switched to the 1990's. The 1950's parts read like adult fiction, but the 90's sections were very angsty and felt more YA. Case in point: There is a part in the 90's POV with a lot of detail in and leading up to a scene, but then Fuentes jarringly wrote (of the character), "We had sex. Twice." I wasn't looking for a sex scene per se, but it was written in such a juvenile way, especially after there was a largely unnecessary scene of fellatio earlier in the book. That's how the book read for me: too much detail in some areas and not enough in others.
I honestly found this book confusing in multiple scenes, which was why I struggled with it the most. I literally read through scenes twice and still wasn't able to make complete sense of them. I would have chalked it up to Fuentes' use of magical realism and leaving things open ended to set up for reveals later in the story, but that couldn't even totally explain the obfuscating writing. For example,
I may bump this up to 2.5 stars, rounded to 3 upon further consideration or after my book club discussion if the book makes more sense to me at that point. As of now, I found it too confusing and disjointed to say I liked it (3 stars).
