Reviews with content warning for Toxic friendship - A Scatter of Light

Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

A Scatter of Light by Malinda Lo

14 reviews

novella42's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

I know part of my frustration with this book is that I didn't notice it's not a romance novel, like Last Night at the Telegraph Club. I went into it expecting something else, and so I spent a lot of time angry and confused, and didn't see what it was trying to do until the very end.

There were some beautiful lines. I think I most appreciated her relationship with her grandmother, a wonderful character who definitely stole the show for me.

I may try to revise this review after I get some distance from it.

Content Warnings

radhikag's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

My heart feels so tender and pure. I love this book and I’m so happy it was my first read of the year. Love is so tender and sweet and soft n lasting!! I loved reading about Aria’s story, so much of it reminded me of i guess my first proper ~queer~ situationship and also made me ache for the how sweet it might have been to know n explore and presence this part of myself when i was younger, like Aria here or Lily in last night at the telegraph club.

I’m so happy these books exist, I can’t wait to re read them time and time again. I think everyone should read these but esp queer Bay Area people lol because it’s beautiful to see all the details I recognize and know about my home and city and just ugh!! Too good!
—
Some quotes I love:

"You can't worry about other people's feelings about what you're creating," Joan said. "That will suffocate you. You have to do what your heart desires."

Joan and Steph were so focused on their conversation, it was as if I wasn't even there.

"What if what your heart desires hurts someone else?" Steph asked.

"Sometimes you can't avoid that," Joan said, "because people have feelings, and other people's feelings aren't always congruent with ours. But here's the important thing when it comes to art. This is what I've learned: The art is greater than you and your feelings. You have to serve it. It is not you. Some people will never understand that, but you need to surround yourself with people who do understand it. And you need to understand it yourself. Whatever you're creating may come from within you and your life, but then —almost like a child, it comes out of your body and it grows up and walks away. It walks away and affects other people you don't know and have never met. That's the beauty of it, and the reason I keep trying new things.

You never know who it will affect."

(170)

“[Her] physical body may be gone now, but who she was is not gone. She was more than her body, just as we are all more than our bodies. She was connected with all of you. You influenced her, and she influenced you, and that influence continued.”
The urn was beautiful. It had a round belly and an elegantly curved neck and a perfectly fitted kid, and it had been glazed in some way that left brilliant sea green steaks and dark blue flecks on the surface. As if the sea had been burned into the clay.
My stomach was a hollow inside me.
“Everything [she] taught you goes on. The thoughts that arise in your mind when you think of her are still influenced by her.”
The hollow was growing. I would become a sinkhole.
Susan Douglas lot a candle on the altar. A thin trickle of smoke rose from the march. “Earth returning to earth, fire returning to fire, wind returning to wind, water returning to water.” (309)

Content Warnings

space_pancake's review against another edition

Go to review page

reflective fast-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

calicat42's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book reminds me so much of “Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret.” As a young girl, I could relate to Margaret, and I grew up with her. Now, as a young woman who can relate in an unbelievable number of ways to Aria, I’ve grown (and healed) a bit more with her.

It’s a beautiful companion novel to “Last Night at the Telegraph Club”, with another incredible narrator who allows you to experience the journey of finding oneself through complicated family dynamics, high school, and relationships. I wish I could read it again for the first time!

Content Warnings

lizziaha's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I love the way that Malinda Lo writes queer women, especially butches. And the way Lo integrates queer community into this work is wonderful, especially the messy queer rep. That being said, personally I didn’t vibe with the infidelity plot line. But Lo’s attention to detail in describing food and art seems unique and beautiful in its own right.

Content Warnings

geetanshtea's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad fast-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? Yes

3.5

Really didn’t like the infidelity/cheating plot, didn’t find any of the characters too likable, and didn’t feel too satisfied at the end. However, the writing was wonderful/typical Malinda Lo in the best way, and it was cool to read about a post-HS coming out story. Also the setting descriptions were beautifully integrated with the story and truly painted a picture.

Content Warnings

lucypoppleton6's review against another edition

Go to review page

Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.0

I want to start off by saying that this book is not close to Last Night at the Telegraph Club. It is marketed as a companion, but it only briefly touches on Kath and Lily’s story.

The book tells the story of 18 year-old Aria Tang West in the summer between high school and college. It is definitely a coming of age story as she explores her sexuality (it’s not clear if she’s bi or lesbian). But what holds this book back is the fact that she is involved in an affair. Both Aria and Steph (her grandmother’s gardener) know that Steph is dating someone else, yet they choose to cheat even without Steph breaking up with her girlfriend first. It’s messy, and not in a good way.

The better relationships in the story are between Aria and her family and high school friends. I loved her relationship with her grandmother through art and with her friend Tasha as they come out to each other.

Also, the historical aspect of the book could be explored better. The book barely mentions the legalization of gay marriage or homophobia at all. It seems like it is just thrown in the description as a premise without being addressed in the book.

Content Warnings

kessy's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

3.75

Content Warnings

lettuce_read's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.5

Content Warnings

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

Go to review page

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? Yes

4.5

It's the summer after high school graduation, and Aria is sent to her grandmother's house for the summer after a boy publishes photos of her with her shirt off. It's there Aria meets Steph, her grandmother's gardener. Steph, who introduces Aria to the queer world of art and music. Who might make Aria realize she's not straight.

This book is set in 2013, after the legalization of gay marriage in the United States. Lo brilliantly adds little details about this throughout the book, showing the reader how the news affected the LGBTQ+ community in different ways.

Aria's journey in this book is messy. It's emotional. It's relatable. However, while this book is billed as YA, I think it might have a slightly older target audience. Twenty-somethings might see themselves more in this book, because of the time period its set in.

Like all of Malinda Lo's book, there's an emotional tenderness in this book as Aria is trying to discover herself. It's not a fast moving book, but a book focused on the ways that she is changing, the ways that she is coming into herself. It is honestly so beautifully written.

My only complaint, really, is that this is being promoted as a companion to [book:Last Night at the Telegraph Club|35224992], and while there is a connection, it's very small. I almost wished that aspect could have been explored a little more, because I think it would have just pushed this book over the edge, up to five stars for me.

Nevertheless, this is still an emotional, coming into your identity story and I'd highly recommend it!

Content Warnings

More...