Reviews

New York Ghost by Ling Ma

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caseyaonso's review against another edition

4.0

soo quietly eerie and devastating! solidified for me that i clearly have a thing for apocalypse media lol. really liked the balance between the past and present povs, i usually dont love that structure but ma was able to create solid intrigue both before and during the pandemic (without shelling out cheap dramatics constantly) that made the story super engaging. there’s a lot of cultural commentary to chew on in this as well (and some insanely dead-on predictions considering this came out in 2018). have to mention the concept for the infected as a highlight too, their qualities were so interesting and really leaned into what i personally prefer when it comes to gore (focusing more on the mental horror over body). not surprising but this reminded me at points of the feeling when picking up those lore notes in tlou but funny enough toward the end it also felt reminiscent of everything you ever wanted by luiza sauma (which i loved).

koriann's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

niu_reads's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

steller0707's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

3.0

jademcam's review against another edition

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5.0

ce livre va rester dans mes pensées un bon bout de temps je pense… j’ai eu un peu de mal à rentrer dans l’histoire au départ mais ensuite vraiment incroyable ! une critique de la société capitaliste sous forme d’une épidémie
ling ma a une plume magnifique <3

wall0w's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

3.5

I think I went into this book expecting something different than what it delivers. Above all else, this book is a slice of life, non-linearly following our protagonist through the pre-, post-, and arising apocalypse.
I heard the plot of this described many times as "the apocalypse happens and you just keep working because capitalism" and, while that is one plot point (one that is at the middle of the timeline), I wouldn't necessarily call it central. In my reading, the emotional experiences of the main character, and her drive to keep going forward is at the core.
I might have liked the book more if I liked or connected to any of the characters, or their motivations (or even the set pieces). It could be the experience of living through a pandemic that (hot take) is still raging that this story feels less impactful but if I'm honest, this is probably one of the books that I read and forget that I've read it.