Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

42 reviews

thekatreturns's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

This was so lovely! Lily is a wonderful protagonist and her story is a beautifully written and very necessary addition to the lesbian YA canon. As a butch, I appreciated the portrayal of desire for butches; that’s extremely rare and it was very heartwarming here. This isn’t all romance, and the non-romance sections were really what made Lily jump off the page to me. My biggest issue is that there was so little information about what happened between the ending and the epilogue, when it could have been structured in a way that didn’t feel so rushed.

For example, some letters between Lily and Kath during the time when they were living apart would have been lovely.

I really appreciated the level of detail in the worldbuilding. It was meticulously researched and feels very real. I would heartily recommend this to any YA LGBTQ books fan! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, and Lesbophobia

Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Deportation

maya_venkatesh36's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia and Racism

Moderate: Violence

kiractivity's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This was an absolutely beautiful book and it was so well-written. It perfectly captures the LGBTQ+ ideas and makes it feel so real

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Xenophobia, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Homophobia, Racism, and Police brutality

kshertz's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective 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? No

5.0

I don’t give a lot of 5 star ratings. But I am obsessed with this book. It’s brilliant. The time in San Francisco when gay clubs were being closed. Communism rumors were everywhere with McCarthyism. The Chinese were under suspicion and they’re living in Chinatown. All of that setting the stage for a young girl coming of age and realizing she’s a lesbian. The feelings were so authentic and felt so real to me. The racism of the time. The wonder of finding people like you. The tug to feel authentic vs. being shunned by your family and your community. I just loved every page. Definitely one of my favorites this year!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, Outing, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Deportation

booksdogsandcoffee's review against another edition

emotional informative 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? N/A

5.0

This book is an absolute masterpiece. 

Following Lily, a young Asian American who is traversing figuring out her sexuality, the red scare, family, friends and much more during the 1950’s. Lo did a wonderful job writing Kath as well. You really feel for both of these characters. 

I loved seeing young people during this time and the under ground queer clubs that they had to go to since homosexuality was so outlawed back then. It was also beyond heart breaking to see how Chinese Americans and immigrants were treated during the time communism was in the rise. Lo did her research on the history of the time period. Also after the epilogue you get to hear her story as well. 

This book is a must read for everyone. 

Cw
Xenophobia
Homophobia
Bullying 
Toxic friendship
Violence 
Immigration

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Xenophobia, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Bullying and Violence

insomnium995's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia and Violence

ivmaurik's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Violence, and Lesbophobia

the_vegan_bookworm's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

A beautiful, artfully created story about love, homosexuality, race and the oppressive forces at play in 1950's San Francisco. It is well-written with evocative imagery and a plot that keeps you hooked until the end. Thank you, Malinda Lo, for releasing this wonderful piece of fiction.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Lesbophobia, and Outing

Moderate: Xenophobia, Police brutality, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Miscarriage and Violence

laurenkimoto's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Wow how YA has improved since my days. The complex issues and history that have been woven into this story are amazing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, and Outing

Moderate: Hate crime, Miscarriage, Violence, Police brutality, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, and War

taelights's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

I was a bit nervous to give this one a try but I ended up really enjoying it. The book was obviously well researched based on the author's end notes which I found really interesting to read through and I really enjoyed the story itself. I do wish though that the book had been longer or more fast paced to explore more of the romance and give a slightly longer and more detailed conclusion. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, Outing, and Cultural appropriation