You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
daisyfont's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Murder
likeagilmoregirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I love reading from the point of view of an unreliable, anti-hero narrator. There’s just something so fun about it.
I flew through this book so fast. It was well-written, captivating, and thought-provoking.
I’m not quite sure how I felt about the last two chapters, but overall I enjoyed this book a lot. I can’t wait to read more by this author.
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
thatswhatshanread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Although my review may be full of basic bookish rambling about the perpetual spiral of the so-called delulu in regards to the main character who is a writer, the writing in this book by the witty R. F. Kuang is so sharp, timely, and addictive that you certainly feel like you’re delulu too. (Okay I’ll stop using that word now.)
So this novel is basically a ridiculously well-written reddit thread of “AITA for stealing the manuscript of my dead Asian friend and passing it off as my own since I’m a woman, but I’m also very much a cishet white woman?”
GIRLLLLL. Kuang crafted such a punchy, visceral novel about race, loneliness, envy, and the pros and cons of the publishing industry. I was glued to every page, almost like watching a train wreck. It’s like, chapter after chapter, our white MC (June) goes deeper and deeper into her web of lies and you’re like “there’s no way she gets away with this” in a non-Scooby Doo villain kind of way, and then SHE DOES!! She just keeps at it!! The secondhand embarrassment and utter frustration was so real, especially in the way that could absolutely happen in real life, which is messed up but also shows the reality of diversity in today’s society—not always as advanced or progressive as we perceive it to be when it’s not directly related to us. This narrative was such an interesting piece on how far someone will go to save their reputation, when said reputation is a fabricated construct in and of itself. Fascinating.
Parts did remind me of “American Fiction”, which is another great example of the assumptions made about POC writers, just in a sort-of opposite form. In any case, I highly recommend both.
TL;DR June Hayward is kind-of the Hannah Horvath of this story, but somehow even worse. If you liked HBO’s “Girls” for the writing and not for the characters, this book is for you.
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Hate crime, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Gaslighting
Minor: Self harm, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Alcohol
jennaviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Stalking, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Death of parent and War
juliesleseecke's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape and Stalking
Minor: Addiction
dani794's review against another edition
3.25
Graphic: Death, Racism, Xenophobia, Cultural appropriation, and Injury/Injury detail
jcshells'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
4.5
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
dogoodwithbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Cultural appropriation, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexism, Suicide, and Islamophobia
sierrabowers's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
abicaro17's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Islamophobia, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism