Reviews with content warning for Racism - A Scatter of Light

I absolutely adored this book and may have even liked it more than I liked Last Night at the Telegraph Club which is saying something because I loved that book. I appreciate that this book wasn't a straight up sequel of that one but it still incorporates it and you get to see a glimpse of Lily and Kath's lives so many years later.

I feel like a lot about Aria's character resonated with me, not sure what that said about me exactly lol, but I do enjoyed reading her POV as she went through this tumultuous summer before college. She doesn't always make the best decisions, but that's part of growing up and starting to figure out who you really are. They're are quite a few possible triggers in this book, so be sure to check those. There's also one scene that's quite spicy for a YA book 🔥

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tangleroot_eli's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

I thought I knew what kind of book this was. Then the last few chapters punched me in the feels. A much less predictable book than I expected, which I love.

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jessi21's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

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sarah984's review against another edition

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hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

I started out really liking this book and I loved the ending, but there are so many inexplicable writing decisions made in the middle that it wound up disappointing me. The parts about Aria learning to appreciate the perspectives of the adults in her life, going to the dyke march and the music festival, and trying to make art were really compelling but the romance was just... it was bad. The LI is older and already has a girlfriend and it's impossible to see what she could possibly see in this bland 18 year old that would make her act out like that.

Aria is also like... there is a scene where she finds out a relative might be dying and all she can think about is cheating with this woman again.

Also imo the sex scenes were way too graphic - yeah I'm an adult and I read adult books but also I do not want to know what is going where in YA.

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hobbithopeful's review against another edition

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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

4.5

I enjoyed this book by Malinda Lo, however I don't quite love it as much as Last Night at the Telegraph Club. (I am giving this book 4.5 stars so if that tells anything about how much I enjoyed it)
This is a queer coming of age novel that follows teenage Aria during the years that gay marriage is legalized. Fantastic read, just didn't have the magic of the other book for me.
This is also touted as being a "companion novel" to Last Night at the Telegraph Club. In my opinion this is not really true, we get a brief mention of the characters but they never *actually* appear on page.

They are somewhat distant cousins once removed and Aria reads a newspaper article about them and her Mom talks about meeting Lily and her girlfriend at a birthday party. That is all you get, I was really disappointed especially considering how much it was a companion novel, the characters never even interact which is odd because they have similar career aspirations.

Malinda Lo has a beautiful way of writing, whenever I read anything by her I always feel drawn into the pages. If she is talking about sandy beaches I feel the heat on my face, and the sand in between my toes. If she talks about brush strokes on a canvas, the stiff fabric feels as real to me as the thick paint that glides across it.
I also love the cover, it so perfectly encapsulates the feeling of the book and the title. The way it draws your eye across the page and is full of colors, the symbolism is very well done.
If I had to nitpick I wish the toxic relationship between

Steph and Lisa was addressed more. It is quite obvious as the book goes on that Lisa is very controlling and toxic (no justification for the infidelity...but still) Also the relationship between Aria and her Mother is left very much unresolved. (Even at the end she isn't at her art show) Which really is sad, but I guess that is also the harsh reality of life. (We don't always get happy endings)

A must read for sure.

And the ending, while bittersweet, I don't think it could have ended any other way. BUT there were several threads and unanswered questions I had about several characters that felt very open ended and just left me with more questions. (Not always a bad occurrence, but still. I want to know who is engaged to who etc)

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kappafrog's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

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

2.25

Big disappointment after how much I liked Last Night at the Telegraph Club. Boring characters, pretty predictable plot, and the infidelity made the main character very unsympathetic. I only kept reading for the promised update on Lily and Kath but it was very anticlimactic and felt shoehorned in.

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bookishsapphicshay's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

4.75

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