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Reviews tagging 'Animal death'
Julie Chan is Dead: 'An absolute masterpiece' Stylist by Liann Zhang, Liann Zhang
126 reviews
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death of parent, Toxic friendship
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, Classism
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Slavery, Violence
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sometimes it felt like it was trying to do too much across genres, especially near the end, but I still enjoyed this. Check it out if you liked Bunny for the jaded MC + strange cliques and mysticism, but also like things to be a little grounded.
Energy: Jaded. Fumbling. Opportunistic.
🐕 Howls: The pacing stumbled when the plot took a turn into a supernatural/fantanstical territory. Narration was sometimes too jaded (or maybe that was just on audio).
🐩 Tail Wags: The snarky, slightly satirical, but still believable tone. How the characters interpret drama and events because they’re so self-absorbed. Watching the MC navigate the life of her dead twin sister.
Scene: 🇺🇸🏝️ Manhattan, NY, USA. Private Caribbean island.
Perspective: Our MC was estranged from their twin after they were separated as children. Their twin went to live with a wealthy adopted family, while our MC was raised by their resentful aunt. Then our MC finds themselves in an unexpected situation where they can truly walk in their twin’s shoes.
Timeline: Linear. 2020s. ☀️ Summery.
Narrative: Invisible in the room, listening to the main character (first person).
Fuel: Mysterious death. Suspense and stolen identity conundrums. Culty cliques and remote setting. What happened to Chloe? Will Julie be found out? What was her sister’s life really like? Who are her friends and what is really going on within this exclusive club of influencers?
Cred: Satirical (and a little fantastical)
Mood Reading Match-Up:
Stolen sandwich. Instagram. PR products. Private jets. Affirmations. Beach bungalow. Chopping wood.
- Conversational, detailed, vivid writing style
- Brooding, pitiful, cynical, morally ambiguous characters
- Estranged twins identity entanglement
- Self-care satire meets influencer culture
- No-tech island retreat
- Poor communication kills
- Imposter syndrome and stolen lives
- Vanity, comparison, and curated identities
- How far would you go to belong?
- Death under mysterious circumstances
- Supernatural elements and ancient religions
- Critiques of consumerism, exploitation, social media, fame, and privilege
Content Heads-Up: Alcohol (mention). Animal cruelty/death (baby mice). Blood. Confinement. Corpse (discovery). Depression (medicated). Drugging. Extortion. Food horror. Hit and run. Intoxicated driver (fatal; recalls). Loss of parents (orphaned; as child). Loss of sibling. Miscarriage (on page). Murder. Pregnancy (on page). Suicide (mention). Toxic caregiver. Vomit.
Rep: Chinese Amercian. Filippino heritage (peripheral). Cis. Hetero. Queer. Pale and tan skin tones.
📚 Format: Libro.fm
My musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Blood, Vomit
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Did this not at all go like I expected. Weird, funny and riveting/easy to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Drug use, Miscarriage, Racism, Pregnancy, Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Car accident, Classism
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Julie Chan is dead is not your average influencer thriller. After taking over her dead estranged twin sister’s seemingly fabulous life as an influencer, Julie finds herself thrust into a world of sponsored posts, spin classes, and elite events. But during a retreat with fellow influencers begins to take a turn for the weird, she begins to wonder what is the true price for social media fame.
This was a fun read! I love novels about rich people, I love behind the scenes looks at influencer lives, and I love thrillers. It was a match made in heaven. I thought Julie was a really fun main character, even if she wasn’t the most likable. She was a survivor, a strong character with lots of background that made you understand the decisions she was making, even if they’re a little insane. I thought it was well-paced, even if it felt like there was a lot of story to tell, it was told quickly. While it wasn’t what I was expecting - especially towards the end - it was a solid thriller, with a unique premise. A new lens from which to consider the perspective of fictional influencer narrators. I’d give it 3.75 stars!
This was a fun read! I love novels about rich people, I love behind the scenes looks at influencer lives, and I love thrillers. It was a match made in heaven. I thought Julie was a really fun main character, even if she wasn’t the most likable. She was a survivor, a strong character with lots of background that made you understand the decisions she was making, even if they’re a little insane. I thought it was well-paced, even if it felt like there was a lot of story to tell, it was told quickly. While it wasn’t what I was expecting - especially towards the end - it was a solid thriller, with a unique premise. A new lens from which to consider the perspective of fictional influencer narrators. I’d give it 3.75 stars!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Racism
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Miscarriage, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Classism
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Racism, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol
Minor: Addiction, Body shaming, Confinement, Infertility, Slavery, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I will never read another book about influencers after this mess. Julie Chan is Dead is a train wreck from start to finish. It lures you in with a great premise, a broke cashier stepping into her glamorous influencer twin’s life, and then completely squanders it. I thought I was getting a sharp, possibly funny thriller about influencer culture. Instead, it sinks into absurdity and bad taste.
Once the Belladonnas headed to the island, any sense of direction disappeared. The plot turns into a bizarre mess, highlighted by a revolting scene where a group of white women gang up on a Black woman, restrain her, and tie her to a bed. It is disturbing, and the author handles it with zero care or purpose. Then comes the jaw-dropping “what am I even reading” moment: a character eats a live baby mouse. Not symbolic. Not meaningful. Just gross for the sake of being gross.
The book is riddled with loose ends. The aunt who is supposedly extorting the main character is never resolved. Entire threads vanish without explanation, making the story feel lazy and unfinished. By the time it ends, you are left with the sense that the author either gave up or never had a coherent plan to begin with.
What could have been a clever and entertaining thriller is instead a pile of half-baked ideas and pointless shock value. It is not edgy. It is not smart. It is just bad.
Zero stars. Not worth your time, money, or brain cells.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death
Moderate: Racism
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5 ⭐️
I debated on what rating to give this book. I found it to be a fast read that does not beat around the bush. For that reason, I gave it a higher score because honestly, this book did a lot of things that made me give it a lower score.
The Good:
As previously mentioned, it was fast-paced, which was nice.
Lacrimosa was mentioned and due to this song's recent popularity in pop culture, I laughed imagining how it was used in the setting of the book. Minus .5 points because Julie did not mention the song being used to be funny. Look, this classical song is great and dramatic but if you watched Sky Castle or Penthouse the way this song is used in kdramas is so ridiculously dramatic that I find it comical now.
It hits on some important points on how social media can consume you. Although a little out there, it also shows how far people will go to be influencers and be loved by others in parasocial relationships.
The Bad:
Julie is an annoying main character and narrator. She's also very dumb and too impulsive. At the beginning of the book she doesn't think much and just acts. Then she will spend days panicking about the actions she jumped into. I think there are parts where you are supposed to feel pity for her, but I don't. The scenes with her aunt made me so mad. I can't describe it without spoiling, but man that scene made me roll my eyes at how dumb Julie is. She's also easily persuaded and influenced. Her jealousy and envy of others are very notable. I am sure this was done on purpose, but it still annoyed me.
The author uses IRL unironically in the text. It's something that will end up aging this book. That being said, pop culture references in this book will also age it. Not that many compared to the previous books I have read.
The overused phrase of "I mean..." I only noticed this because it was used a lot in the middle of the book. In one chapter, which involved one scene, Julie uses that to accentuate what she was saying at least three times consecutively.
Mentioning how Julie feels addicted to her phone and social media as "I'm like an iPad kid without the iPad" felt dumb. Addiction to social media was a thing before iPad kids became a phrase to use for Gen Alpha.
Overall, this book being a look into the world of influencers was entertaining and a little unhinged at the end. It's a satire and not too unrealistic compared to real life. Sure, it did go extreme with some of the things that were described but not something unheard of. I wasn't surprised by the reveals or where this book was headed. I mean, I clued in the moment Lacrimosa was used in the book.
I debated on what rating to give this book. I found it to be a fast read that does not beat around the bush. For that reason, I gave it a higher score because honestly, this book did a lot of things that made me give it a lower score.
The Good:
As previously mentioned, it was fast-paced, which was nice.
Lacrimosa was mentioned and due to this song's recent popularity in pop culture, I laughed imagining how it was used in the setting of the book. Minus .5 points because Julie did not mention the song being used to be funny. Look, this classical song is great and dramatic but if you watched Sky Castle or Penthouse the way this song is used in kdramas is so ridiculously dramatic that I find it comical now.
It hits on some important points on how social media can consume you. Although a little out there, it also shows how far people will go to be influencers and be loved by others in parasocial relationships.
The Bad:
Julie is an annoying main character and narrator. She's also very dumb and too impulsive. At the beginning of the book she doesn't think much and just acts. Then she will spend days panicking about the actions she jumped into. I think there are parts where you are supposed to feel pity for her, but I don't. The scenes with her aunt made me so mad. I can't describe it without spoiling, but man that scene made me roll my eyes at how dumb Julie is. She's also easily persuaded and influenced. Her jealousy and envy of others are very notable. I am sure this was done on purpose, but it still annoyed me.
The author uses IRL unironically in the text. It's something that will end up aging this book. That being said, pop culture references in this book will also age it. Not that many compared to the previous books I have read.
The overused phrase of "I mean..." I only noticed this because it was used a lot in the middle of the book. In one chapter, which involved one scene, Julie uses that to accentuate what she was saying at least three times consecutively.
Mentioning how Julie feels addicted to her phone and social media as "I'm like an iPad kid without the iPad" felt dumb. Addiction to social media was a thing before iPad kids became a phrase to use for Gen Alpha.
Overall, this book being a look into the world of influencers was entertaining and a little unhinged at the end. It's a satire and not too unrealistic compared to real life. Sure, it did go extreme with some of the things that were described but not something unheard of. I wasn't surprised by the reveals or where this book was headed. I mean, I clued in the moment Lacrimosa was used in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Murder
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This honestly read like two entirely different books.
We follow Julie Chan, a girl who was separated from her twin when they were young and lives a mediocre life. Her twin, Chloe, is a famous influencer, but doesn't want anything to do with Julie. When Julie receives a mysterious call from Chloe and checks in on her, she finds her dead in her apartment. The only logical next step is for her to take her sister's place and step into her life.
There were aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. The tension of wondering if Julie will get away with it, the focus on all of the dark aspects of social media and influencer culture, etc. However, halfway through the book it completely switched gears to an island cult vibe. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love a book about cults, but it felt completely out of left field. Overall, I enjoyed reading it, but it wasn't memorable.
We follow Julie Chan, a girl who was separated from her twin when they were young and lives a mediocre life. Her twin, Chloe, is a famous influencer, but doesn't want anything to do with Julie. When Julie receives a mysterious call from Chloe and checks in on her, she finds her dead in her apartment. The only logical next step is for her to take her sister's place and step into her life.
There were aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. The tension of wondering if Julie will get away with it, the focus on all of the dark aspects of social media and influencer culture, etc. However, halfway through the book it completely switched gears to an island cult vibe. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love a book about cults, but it felt completely out of left field. Overall, I enjoyed reading it, but it wasn't memorable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death