Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Olga Dies Dreaming

I really liked this book!! I was invested in the characters and their story lines, the characters were dynamic, there were some twists and turns that I didn’t expect, and I enjoyed the audiobook narration

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beckykphillips's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was such an incredible exploration of family, grief, politics and the interplay between all. I also did not know much at all about the history of Puerto Rico and was fascinated by the history and disappointed at the horrific colonialism puertorriqueños experience. Olga and her family were absolutely fascinating and they felt so very real, Gonzalez’s prose is just amazing at transporting you right to where her characters are. Olga’s emotional journey throughout the book was beautiful and how she learns to open up and trust again after the years of emotional manipulation by her mother. Prieto being able to come into himself was also so satisfying and left me feeling hopeful about the future in their world.

I absolutely recommend reading this book and can’t wait to read more of her writing.

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pferdina's review

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emotional lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

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zxnaida's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-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

3.5

I have been putting off writing this review for a while because I feel conflicted about my rating. Olga Dies Dreaming starts off strong, with chapters alternating POVs of two main characters, and letters from a secondary character also serving as another POV. The characters felt real and personable. I enjoyed how I went back and forth with really disliking some of the characters and yet still rooting for them. However, some plot points felt sort of just thrown in there with no relevance. This bugged me. With all these things considered, I would rate it a 4. However, there is a scene towards the end of the book that seemed very unnecessary, and it really threw me off, and I don’t feel like it’s a 4 anymore, it’s more of a 3.5 to me, I think. I plan to read Xochitl Gonzalez’s next book which is set to release this year.

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