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thefemalekyle's review against another edition
- 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
1.0
This was selected for a romance book club read from a friend of a friend (no one in the group).
When I hadn’t started it yet and another friend in the club said they were gonna “have questions about the original pride & prejudice” I should’ve known something was up. For street cred, I have a P&P foot tattoo and also was in the TRENCHES of the Lizzie Bennet Diaries fandom while it was airing as well as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.
Aside from all the casual racism, homophobia, and transphobia, this was a flop of a modern adaptation that the author only ‘’modernized” bits of the book when it suited them and in increasingly gross ways.
I am just gonna post my live react notes below cause I’m done dedicating brain space to this drivel:
[Begin]
Does this family…hate one another?
Oh the mom is racist AND homophobic…cool!
Jesus this is a tough read. How do you zap all of the charm from the Bennents???!!
WOW sending cheap lingerie. How charming and sexy of him.
“Bang you in a hotel I get to expense” what a fucking romantic
Girl, Lizzie you are 38. Why are you still mooning over this asshole. STAND UP!
These people text like boomers
Irrationally annoyed at this author needing to prove a point how much she knows Cincinnati. Down to the streets.
One thing I will give the story is the medical debt of Mr. Bennett is an ok change for modern times.
“Two runs? Are you anorexic?” WHAT
“A chubby chaser.” Guck. I hate it here.
They keep talking about peoples issues but then never to anything to address it. Georgie has anorexia. Mrs. Bennetts a shopaholic.
All the ‘NPC characters’ aren’t developed past the status of their skin or what genitals or ‘defects’ they have. Mary is ace and only likes bowling!!??! Shawn is Black and “oh my mom’s a racist?!” “Georgie is anorexic but WHELP what can we do?!” UGH
The language was tedious and overly flowery to the point of exhaustion at times. If Curtis was trying to emulate Jane Austen they failed. I don’t think she likes any of these characters.
AND WOW OH WOW DONT GET ME STARTED ON THE SURPRISE TRANS TWIST WITH THE WICKEM (OR SORRY, WICK AND HAM, come’on) WHO IS THE EQUIV THE VILLAIN OF THE ORIGINAL BOOK
Calling being trans a ‘birth defect’ Darcy wtffff
OMG I hate this. I truly do.
[End]
This book was so bad my friends and I continued to trash it at arts fest this weekend. It’s becoming an inside joke it was so bad.
I wish I could scrub this from my brain.
Moderate: Sexism, Racism, Acephobia/Arophobia, Homophobia, and Transphobia
mfallon3491's review against another edition
2.0
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Transphobia, Body shaming, Racism, and Homophobia
thepinkestshark's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was REALLY worried about transphobia for a hot minute, but while transphobia was discussed, and people were homophobic, most of the main cast of characters were not, so deep breath thank you!!!! I appreciated the realistic-ness of it, but as someone queer, I would be careful if you have bad reactions to it!!!! Keep yourselves safe and happy :)
Moderate: Transphobia
Minor: Homophobia
zoiejanelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this book was recommended to me by my Children’s Book Council mentor and took me a few months to get to. boy am i glad i did. it was a perfect time capsule of 2013 culture—from the white, republican parents, to the confusion about trransgender people, to the classism and social hierarchy, AND the fashion/fitness trends… this was a trip.
equal parts cringey and charming, the story itself was fun to read and experience alongside the quirky cast of characters. i loved the tweaks that the author made to each character, but that the overall story remained largely the same. of course, i loved darcy most ardently. wink.
because of the slight transphobia and extremely datedness of the book, i cant give it a full five stars. it was extremely slow (but so is the original, i hear) and very character driven, so i got lost at a few points trying to determine where the story was headed. however, i cringed, i laughed out loud, i cried, i swooned, and i shouted… and those are all signs of a good book.
bonus—this semi-viral tweet came from my listening to this audiobook:
“instead of enemies to lovers, i'm looking for haters to lovers. two people with bad attitudes whose relationship is wholly based off their mutual, yet completely unjustified, disrespect for one another. two people who antagonize each other until it somehow turns into love.”
Moderate: Alcohol, Infertility, Eating disorder, Classism, Sexual content, Sexism, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Racism, Misogyny, Infidelity, and Fatphobia
Minor: Vomit, Homophobia, Abortion, Cursing, and Medical content
kearstinreading's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
My initial excitement to dive into this book gradually turned into disappointment, mainly due to some questionable authorial choices. It feels as though the author tried to incorporate multiple storylines and character traits to cater to a broader audience. Unfortunately, these attempts went horribly wrong. The novel is marred by instances of transphobia, homophobia, fatphobia, and references to eating disorders. Even beloved characters express opinions and say things that are not just out of character but also offensive, making you wonder why you ever rooted for them in the first place.
Moderate: Homophobia, Fatphobia, Eating disorder, and Transphobia
dracula_but_slay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Moderate: Transphobia
Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Antisemitism, and Fatphobia
allthingsnerdy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Transphobia
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexism, and Racism
theelizart's review against another edition
Graphic: Transphobia and Homophobia
Moderate: Antisemitism
Don't bother with it, it only gets worse through the bookshayanelacey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
On this read, it felt more like a satirical romp that I thoroughly enjoyed. Even if some of the addressing of social issues felt a touch clumsy at times and I'm not sure the social commentary always landed as sharply as intended.
Moderate: Infertility, Homophobia, Transphobia, Racism, and Classism
jjbug86's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Homophobia, Racism, and Fatphobia