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toffishay's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
What a wonderfully strange collection of stories! I enjoyed reading these real-stories with varying levels of fantastical elements. They felt both grounded and other-worldly, feeling like real versions of our messed up world and messed up lives, in the most interesting possible way. I got something out of each story; none felt weak to me. My absolute favorite was "Returning", and I also really enjoyed "Los Angeles", "G", "Yeti Lovemaking", and "Office Hours." If you are looking for similar vibes, I might recommend Temporary by Hilary Lechter.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Xenophobia and Racism
Minor: Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Sexual violence
applesodaperson's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
Yeah this book really just didn’t speak to me. I ended up skimming half the stories because they were either so boring and forgettable, or confusing . I expected this book to be really good, but I felt like it had nothing to say really, and the short stories felt underwhelming, undeveloped, and disjointed. Los Angeles and Oranges were forgettable, which was not a good sign for the rest of the book. G was the most interesting story, with an interesting premise, and was definitely my favorite out of all of them. The ending was very sad though. Yeti Lovemaking started off so strong, with a cool premise, but right as it got interesting, it just ended. It was so abrupt and disappointing. Returning just had way too much going on, with too many plot lines for such a short story. I don’t even remember Office Hours honestly. Peking Duck was okay, and I liked the immigrant experience aspect, but the rest was forgettable. And yeah I don’t even remember Tomorrow, I think I just skimmed it to get the book over with. So yeah this book had pretty much every element of poorly done short story collections in my opinion. Very disappointed and I wish I didn’t read it.
Read from the BYU library.
Read from the BYU library.
Content Warnings
Minor: Pregnancy and Sexual content
blueyogi's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship and Pregnancy
Moderate: Body shaming, Xenophobia, and Drug use
Minor: Sexual content, Racism, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Fatphobia
rosemaryandrue's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
In Bliss Montage, a woman and her family live in the same house as her one hundred ex-boyfriends, women trapped in a toxic friendship take a drug that makes themselves invisible, and a pregnant woman must caretake the protruding arm of her fetus as she awaits giving birth to the rest of it.
The distance from everyday life that fantasy brings us can be used to magnify reality, and Ling Ma takes takes ample advantage of this in Bliss Montage, a short story collection that examines themes such as family, ownership of experiences, and above all alienation.
The writing combines an unnerving flat affect with startlingly beautiful turns of phrase, and the each story are dense enough in its own way that I was left with something to chew over long after I'd finished listening to it. My favorite stories were "Peking Duck," which discusses if a daughter can claim ownership of her mother's disturbing encounter with a door-to-door salesman, and "Returning," where a couple return to an ancestral country to see a festival in which participants bury themselves alive to transform themselves.
However, sometimes the detachment of the narrators starts to become a bit much - they all seemed to be a little too similar to each other, anxious, alienated women with unsatisfying lives, as though we were seeing the same person in alternate universes. I felt that if there had been more variation in the main characters, the stories could have tapped a richer vein of themes to explore. Some of the stories were also too opaque and open-ended for my taste - "Yeti Lovemaking" in particular comes to mind.
I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by Katharine Chin. I thought she did an excellent job - her gentle tone captures the detached yet conflicted tone of the narrators, but also conveys the strongly ironic strain that permeates many of the stories. This is a case where the choice of narrator really elevates the experience of the book.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Racism, and Sexual violence
Minor: Sexual content, Drug use, Toxic friendship, and Pregnancy
perkyanda's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I loved this! The lack of resolution for the series Is the only aspect I didn’t love. But I loved the three and connection began stories, and the weirdness and realistic feelings and just aching they came through. I can’t wait till she has another novel or collection out!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Terminal illness, Infidelity, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Misogyny, Body shaming, and Death
ninahuynh's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This was quite the read. There were times I thought maybe the stories connected, but then the story would go into confusing narration. It may be because I was not in the mindset for this type of narrative, but boy was it difficult to get into. The only story that really intrigued me and I actually remember is the yeti story. I usually like odd stories but these were not for me; I was just confused on what I was reading for most of the time. It might have been bliss for me to still have this on my tbr.
Interesting concepts; execution did not work for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Drug use
Moderate: Addiction, Physical abuse, and Racism
Minor: Sexual content
robinks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was such an interesting collection of stories. They all left me feeling a bit uneasy and unresolved, though the fantastic elements in each of the stories were quite creative. I particularly enjoyed Oranges and Peking Duck.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Sexism, and Racism
Moderate: Pregnancy, Death, and Infidelity
Minor: Sexual content
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