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A review by palomapepper
A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry
1.0
I was so excited at the concept of this book. Puerto Rico + magical realism in a YA novel? Sign me up!
...Color me disappointed.
My main issues:
- Puerto Rico was depicted as one big stereotype of itself (complete with sexy Latin lovers). The Spanglish felt "off", and was clearly written by an outsider - was it that hard to run it past someone who hears this stuff on a regular basis?
- The island is basically a colorful backdrop for the stories of two white American characters. Puerto Ricans themselves only seem to play the role of servants or redshirts.
- While reading this, I scribbled out an entire page of fact-checks, including: the Taino language went extinct in the 19th century; Puerto Rico is simultaneously its own nation AND part of America; your average Puerto Rican isn't necessarily listening to salsa on a daily basis; Puerto Ricans are not always a socioeconomic underclass (especially on their own damn island).
- The main character didn't feel like a real person, and his motives didn't make sense to me. He seemed mainly driven by... ennui?
...Color me disappointed.
My main issues:
- Puerto Rico was depicted as one big stereotype of itself (complete with sexy Latin lovers). The Spanglish felt "off", and was clearly written by an outsider - was it that hard to run it past someone who hears this stuff on a regular basis?
- The island is basically a colorful backdrop for the stories of two white American characters.
Spoiler
(Technically, one is revealed to be half-Dominican, but he's a blond-haired American who seems to identify as white.)- While reading this, I scribbled out an entire page of fact-checks, including: the Taino language went extinct in the 19th century; Puerto Rico is simultaneously its own nation AND part of America; your average Puerto Rican isn't necessarily listening to salsa on a daily basis; Puerto Ricans are not always a socioeconomic underclass (especially on their own damn island).
- The main character didn't feel like a real person, and his motives didn't make sense to me. He seemed mainly driven by... ennui?