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kbeucler's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Deadnaming, Transphobia, and Dysphoria
ncq's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Deadnaming, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, and Gaslighting
Also features sex work throughout, but without being anti-sex workraybudbury's review
- 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
3.75
The transphobia and sexual abuse/assault I would say could be triggering for some ppl. This one is both a warm hug but can also knock the wind out of you which the author did well in setting the mood for those situations.
The concept was so ambitious as there is extensive music and violin knowledge/playing, Faustian bargains, found family, and… aliens. And honestly the author pulls it off for the most part. I do think the strongest bit of this book is the relationships between characters more so then plot etc.
(Also this is a 3 am review so if this makes no sense sorry about it)
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Classism
scifi_rat's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria
caseylovett's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Deadnaming, Physical abuse, Racism, and Dysphoria
Minor: Self harm
winter_is_reading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
To trans pain and trans triumph, to violence and violins, to classical Bartok and 8 bit Undertale. This book has me stopping, reflecting, smiling, and crying. It’s not a sad book, but the beautiful introspection had me tearing up when I least expected it.
There are heavy themes in this book. There’s a lot of transphobia and violence against trans women. There’s anti-Asian racism, sexism, flashbacks to child abuse, and mentions of sex work and rape. But again, I wouldn’t say this is a sad book. There’s a lot of triumph and beauty despite the evils of men.
I can’t recommend this book enough.
Angst: 4/5
Spice: no spice, but there’s a darling romance
Graphic: Racism, Transphobia, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Dysphoria
amvs1111's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Outing, and Dysphoria
monstrouscosmos's review
- 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
4.5
Relationships: 8/10
Atmosphere/Setting: 10/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Plot/Intrigue: 9/10
Internal Logic: 8/10
Entertainment: 9/10
Overall: 62/70, 4.5*
sometimes a family is 2 parents, 2 kids, and a household pet. sometimes a family is a transgender runaway, The Queen of Hell and her living companion Oki, and a group of intergalactic refugees-turned-donut shop proprieters.
I think my biggest issue with the book boils down to the pacing. with 3 primary interconnecting storylines and 1-2 secondary storylines it definitely felt like none actually got the thematic exploration they deserved. specifically I would have loved to see more about the violin shop! this was also the most triggering read I've ever finished. while not necessarily a detriment never feeling like I knew when things would get very heavy very quickly definitely made it difficult to enjoy some of the more sweet and lighthearted moments.
the pros are many though. I actually appreciated the quick POV changes, they were challenging but gave a depth of understanding I appreciated. the LARGE number of neurodivergent-coded characters was also great, love to see a group of people with highly specialized interests who just want to info dump to one another. some of the character beats felt unrealistic at first, but I was quickly able to suspend disbelief when considering some of the sociocultural experiences of the characters (and, again, just coding all the characters as being neurodivergent in some way). given how explicit the writing is in other ways I would have preferred seeing more explanation of how and why characters other than Kristina react the ways they do in-the-moment, but the context clues and overarching pattern of experience was definitely there for me.
Graphic: Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, Lesbophobia, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, and Classism
Moderate: Rape
rape was on page and fade to black, harassment/violence was on page and explicit, assault covers all 3 so I consider it explicitsofiadanielle's review against another edition
- 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
I didn’t know much about the story before diving in, and I was pleasantly surprised! The way this is written reads very easily and quickly; though I was maybe a bit confused in the beginning, after a chapter or two, the paragraph/character POV started to really flow.
The ending seemed almost cinematic, in the sense that it flowed in a lovely way! Some themes pertaining to sexual violence (or just. really negative sexual experiences for Katrina) made me uncomfortable, but also, it’s worth noting that those aspects may not always be fiction, especially to queer individuals. It was great to see Katrina come into her own; her growth is certainly a highlight of this book.
Moderate: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Xenophobia, and Dysphoria
Minor: Drug use, Miscarriage, Self harm, Murder, Lesbophobia, and War
k_fry's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Murder, Outing, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria