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keelirae113's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Grief, Racism, and Violence
Minor: Cancer and Death of parent
lanid's review against another edition
reflective
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Colonisation, Racism, and Xenophobia
withlivjones's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This was such a fun read, a thrilling heist story that is actually realistic in that it’s messy and the characters (far from professional thieves) don’t know what they’re doing a lot of the time, but that makes the way everything comes together that much more satisfying. I loved the discussions of museums keeping stolen artefacts and of being descendants of immigrants and what the American Dream means to the characters in that context. The characters were all well fleshed out with their own arcs and they worked really well together - I especially loved the tension between Alex and Irene.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
Minor: Terminal illness, Racism, and Xenophobia
hannah_steven's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Grief and Xenophobia
Minor: War
jtpgdavey's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Colonisation
Moderate: War
Minor: Racism
elb22's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism and Xenophobia
kimveach's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
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
3.5
I wish I had read this book in print. It was excruciatingly slow on audio. I even increased the speed (which I rarely do as I like the narrators' performances.) I found the male narrator annoying while trying to mimic female voices. It would have been better if he'd read the lines instead of falsetto. This book is primarily a character study of the five members of the theft ring. Unfortunately, they all had similar issues that sounded like repetitive whining. I did appreciate elements of the American-born Chinese diaspora. It paired nicely with similar problems in "Yellowface," which I read at the same time.
I did enjoy the parts of the book dealing with the thefts. That was fun.
I did enjoy the parts of the book dealing with the thefts. That was fun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Racism, Dysphoria, Classism, and Death of parent
emilo's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Colonisation
annoyingtwig's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
tense
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
5.0
objectively, this book does not warrant a 5 star rating. the writing style got pretty repetitive after about 2/3 of the book, the characters voices didn’t feel really distinct from one another, and most of the messages were very heavy handed. if i were being objective, i’d probably give this 3.5/5
however, i am not an objective rater. sometimes (most of the time) i rate on vibe. and i’ll be damned if these vibes did not go so hard. despite all my critiques listed i had so much fun reading this book. and the CLIMAX!!! yeah no 5 stars immediately. so excited for the netflix show. i <3 irene chen 🤗
however, i am not an objective rater. sometimes (most of the time) i rate on vibe. and i’ll be damned if these vibes did not go so hard. despite all my critiques listed i had so much fun reading this book. and the CLIMAX!!! yeah no 5 stars immediately. so excited for the netflix show. i <3 irene chen 🤗
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Racism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Xenophobia
elizabeth_lepore's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia and Racism
Moderate: Death of parent