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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Mad creatives tearing each other down is my new favourite genre. Manages to be a thriller and a mystery and a comedy and a biting social satire - great fun overall. This is contemporary lit and I love it.
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
god, this was fucking stellar. rf kuang said this book would be ridiculous and absurd—and she delivered exactly that. this was an insanely hilarious, page-gripping read. i enjoyed this a little too much.
this is the first novel i've completed of hers, but i've been exposed to her writing before (i read about 55% of the poppy war but haven't had the chance to complete it yet...definitely will soon though, now that fall is coming up). without a doubt, rf kuang is an exceptional writer. her way with words is actually mind-blowing. going into this, i knew her writing would not be something i'd have an issue with. in fact, there's not a single thing i disliked.
i gained a lot of insight on the book publishing process. from drafting manuscripts to querying literary agents to sending books to editors and publishers—it was so fascinating to read.
what's more riveting is how the novel tackles numerous issues within the publishing industry—providing thoughtful commentary on racism, plagiarism, cultural appropriation, cancel culture, performative diversity, and more. the industry, like many others, is absolutely sickening. i found the twitter discourse and jabs at those who hop on hate trains accurate—it's unfortunate how relevant that is in our current day, especially now that cyberbullying has been more normalized than ever.
also, i know june is supposed to be an insufferable character (and trust me, she was), but a part of me wanted to root for her...she was just so determined and delusional, i wanted to applaud her for all the efforts she put into trying not to get caught LOL. girl was crazy but she was putting in the WORK. her spiraling thoughts were definitely disturbing, but i also found them HILARIOUS. i was thoroughly entertained. i can't say i'm surprised by the ending, but i absolutely loved it.
rf kuang, you are amazing. this was perfect.
fast-paced
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Yellowface is the kind of book where I wish I could have had a book club discussion afterwards. There were many topics I wish this book had gone deeper on, and I also think this book brings up topics that would be interesting to discuss with others: cultural appropriation, performative diversity, identity, and racism in the publishing industry.
As for the FMC, June… I have never been so irritated with a main character before, wishing that they would shut up, and yet I kept reading hoping it would get better. The FMC is an unreliable narrator who is so delirious and wrapped up in her own lies — it got to the point where I was annoyed reading because of how she kept playing the victim. I wanted to like June but she definitely made it hard to.
I’m not sure what I was hoping the perfect resolution would be. I also did not know going into this book that there were going to be thriller-ish vibes at times. I think because this was my first immersive read, I did find myself being anxious at times reading about her anxiety spirals (maybe the immersion was a little too immersive in those moments for me 😅).
Overall, it was a quick read with a decent flow and Kuang’s writing obviously kept me reading, but there was no resolution for the main character or the reader.
As for the FMC, June… I have never been so irritated with a main character before, wishing that they would shut up, and yet I kept reading hoping it would get better. The FMC is an unreliable narrator who is so delirious and wrapped up in her own lies — it got to the point where I was annoyed reading because of how she kept playing the victim. I wanted to like June but she definitely made it hard to.
I’m not sure what I was hoping the perfect resolution would be. I also did not know going into this book that there were going to be thriller-ish vibes at times. I think because this was my first immersive read, I did find myself being anxious at times reading about her anxiety spirals (maybe the immersion was a little too immersive in those moments for me 😅).
Overall, it was a quick read with a decent flow and Kuang’s writing obviously kept me reading, but there was no resolution for the main character or the reader.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes