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celiaisreading's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed this so much more than I expected! I think it has a lot to do with the audiobook narrator, she was fantastic and made me like the main character and care for her story a lot more.
Can't explain why but I loved how she pronounced Yannie :)
Can't explain why but I loved how she pronounced Yannie :)
meganori's review against another edition
4.0
A very powerful novel. Would have been five stars but it took a while to get into. That might have just been my head space at the time though, so I'd like to read it again.
rachelbabbage's review against another edition
1.0
You know how books are often either plot driven or character driven? Well somehow this book manages to be neither.
The underwhelming plot would be redeemed if the reader was emotionally attached/invested in the characters, but that was not the case. All the characters were either boring or unlikeable so I wasn't at all disappointed when they met unhappy endings.
The book showed some promise during the prologue (which was 30% of the book?) but there was little-no plot during the main section of the book and the epilogue was confusing.
Overall an underwhelming read. I only finished it because it was short - seriously considered DNF-ing during the main chapters but continued at the promise of only 60 pages remaining.
The underwhelming plot would be redeemed if the reader was emotionally attached/invested in the characters, but that was not the case. All the characters were either boring or unlikeable so I wasn't at all disappointed when they met unhappy endings.
The book showed some promise during the prologue (which was 30% of the book?) but there was little-no plot during the main section of the book and the epilogue was confusing.
Overall an underwhelming read. I only finished it because it was short - seriously considered DNF-ing during the main chapters but continued at the promise of only 60 pages remaining.
oakleighirish's review against another edition
5.0
What a brilliant novel! S.L Lim's narrative style is energetic and engaging, she has a story to tell and it is forceful and compelling. I'm a fan of Korean cinema and I could see similar moral dichotomies, the strong exploiting the weak, and privilege versus disadvantage. Lim also does a brilliant job setting up fascinating family dynamics alongside her brother in childhood with poor Malaysian parents and then later in Sydney with Shan, his wife and teenage daughter in the locus of luxury and wealth. The gender inequalities of traditional parenting styles are ruthlessly exposed as Yannie's impoverished parents mortgage their meagre assets, putting less intelligent older brother, Shan, through local university and Oxford on the back of his smarter sister, Yannie, working in the family shop, for free. I thought the story ran out of steam a little in the last third, but otherwise a enjoyable story told with wit, dynamism and skill.
mkcully's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.5