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A review by linneaandspybat
Arden Grey by Ray Stoeve
emotional
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? It's complicated
3.5
There is a tiny spoiler below, but it won't reveal any major events in the book!
I really like the ace representation; there is not enough of that in fiction but I'm happy to see it emerge more and more in YA fiction. Being ace myself, I recognize many of the thoughts that Arden has about romance and not understanding the physical parts of a relationship.
However, the language doesn't draw me in. It also feels like the writer squeezed too many things into the book at once and because of this it seems a bit unrealistic. I mean, how likely is it that an asexual person will have a trans person as a best friend, at the same time as this trans person has gay parents. Several relationships are abusive, too. It's a little too much. But maybe it's just my small-town experience talking, maybe this actually could be statistically possible in a big city like Seattle.
Nevertheless, I think it's a book well worth reading and I'll definitely recommend it to YA and queer literature readers at my library.
I really like the ace representation; there is not enough of that in fiction but I'm happy to see it emerge more and more in YA fiction. Being ace myself, I recognize many of the thoughts that Arden has about romance and not understanding the physical parts of a relationship.
However, the language doesn't draw me in. It also feels like the writer squeezed too many things into the book at once and because of this it seems a bit unrealistic. I mean, how likely is it that an asexual person will have a trans person as a best friend, at the same time as this trans person has gay parents. Several relationships are abusive, too. It's a little too much. But maybe it's just my small-town experience talking, maybe this actually could be statistically possible in a big city like Seattle.
Nevertheless, I think it's a book well worth reading and I'll definitely recommend it to YA and queer literature readers at my library.