Reviews - The Takedown | The StoryGraph

527 reviews for:

The Takedown

Lily Chu

3.68 AVERAGE

gattolino_nn's review

4.75

emotional funny lighthearted 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: Complicated

I love Lily Chu's books. She writes compelling and driven characters that learn and grow by overcoming personal challenges through out the book. On top of the well written characters each of the couples feel real and different from one another. In this case Dee and Teddy had me giggling at how adorable and dorky the two were together.
They were so sweet and loving to each other, even when they make mistakes you can see how they love each other.

Lily Chu also has an amazing way of dealing with common mental and societal issues. For this book toxic positivity and both diversity and change in the workplace. I thought these issues were really well done and brought them to the reader's mind. It makes you think how you are involved with these issues and what you can do to help.

I cannot wait for her next book. Lily Chu is an auto buy author at this point.

Content Warnings

miss_cjb's review

3.5

lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

karydiazc's review

4.0

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted fast-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

It's kind of amazing how the author gives the book a story and a plot while also turning it into some kind of self help book... At least thats how it felt to me.

I don't suffer from toxic positivity, so I would never read a self help book solely based on it, but reading this one felt helpful all the same while being entretaining.

It was cute, it was romantic and you see the characters gow into themselves as the book progresses. Only thing I disliked overall is how fast everything was at the end, like Chu didn't actually knew how to close the story and just rushed trough.

Content Warnings

ethanzo's review

3.0

funny informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I feel very neutral about this book. I actually was really loving it in the first few chapters and was excited to see an enemies to lovers rivalry about two people obsessed with a puzzle game. Then I realized this book only used said game as a backdrop, and the real story was about a nepotism fashion designer and heir to said fashion company falling in love with a woman who is working for a company to clean up a scandal at the aforementioned fashion company, while also trying to take down a toxic head once again at the fashion company. The dialogue was fun, and I liked the relationship and how they bonded over trivia, it was cute, but things with them did move really fast and was not at all what I'd call enemies to lovers, though in fairness I don't know that the book ever marketed itself as one. I liked the conversations regarding race. It was interesting to see how family dynamics can develop when mixed race coupling is involved, and I did love that representation. I honestly would have preferred to read an entire book where the only stakes were the two top competitors in a puzzle game work against each other and slowly fall in love, but this was fine too. I wouldn't say I recommend this book, but at the same time, I wouldn't tell someone not to read it.