Reviews

This book was unique to say the least.
I did enjoy it, but it took a while for me to get in to the story.

This story is heavily inspired by Asian culture, which is interesting all in itself. The dynamics between the different castes in this society is no surprise. I found myself struggling to comprehend a lot of the demon-esce features of the characters and how it affected the story. I think that was where I fell short.

There was something I really appreciated about the book, Lei was not the chosen one. Authors frequently use the "chosen one" trope throughout their stories. In Girls of Paper and Fire, Lei is not the one who is supposed to assassinate the King, her girlfriend is. I appreciated that so much because it was interesting to see the selfless way Lei worried about Wren rather than coping with the stress of being the chosen one. It was so refreshing. Even though she "killed" the king in the end, it was still nice to see her as not the chosen one.

It is not my favorite thing to read about same sex love, it's my personal preference. This book did have a girl and girl romance, and I actually thought it added to the story. It was gradual, but there was always an emphasis on Wren in Lei's mind, which led to the predictability of their relationship. I honestly think the story would have had the same effect if Lei and Wren were close friends. I think female friendship is a much stronger and more powerful message than representation.

Girls of Paper and Fire wasn't terrible, but it wasn't exactly my favorite either.

dharma_s's review against another edition

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4.0

This was really good. Also, I had a soft spot for it because of all the Malaysian/Southeast Asian references. It was extremely well written with the main characters fleshed out nicely. The world building could have been a little better; some parts were hard to visualize, and I wasn't completely immersed in it. But I loved the relationships, and the different castes, and how people looked - that was especially cool.

23_nikki_23's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 stars

bravemaeve's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

4.0

Not sure what’s been happening but I keep reading 4 star books lately, and I’m loving it! I’d heard about Girls of Paper and Fire for a while and am glad I finally took the plunge. I read nearly the entire book in one day (at work too shh 🤫). I found the worldbuilding wasn’t too complicated, no part dragged, and I was very invested in the characters, plot, and lore. I’m not much of a YA reader anymore but this had me feeling like I was a teenager back in 2015 during the YA book craze. I also can tell the author put so much heart into this story, which is clear in the author’s note at the end. I’m eagerly awaiting the sequel to come off hold at the library so I can continue the series.

Really important to note though that this book can be tough to read and potentially triggering. TWs for rape/sexual assault/sexual violence. Nothing is too explicit but these are major themes throughout the book.

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