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A review by dariadanley
Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan
2.0
This book was unique to say the least.
I did enjoy it, but it took a while for me to get in to the story.
This story is heavily inspired by Asian culture, which is interesting all in itself. The dynamics between the different castes in this society is no surprise. I found myself struggling to comprehend a lot of the demon-esce features of the characters and how it affected the story. I think that was where I fell short.
There was something I really appreciated about the book, Lei was not the chosen one. Authors frequently use the "chosen one" trope throughout their stories. In Girls of Paper and Fire, Lei is not the one who is supposed to assassinate the King, her girlfriend is. I appreciated that so much because it was interesting to see the selfless way Lei worried about Wren rather than coping with the stress of being the chosen one. It was so refreshing. Even though she "killed" the king in the end, it was still nice to see her as not the chosen one.
It is not my favorite thing to read about same sex love, it's my personal preference. This book did have a girl and girl romance, and I actually thought it added to the story. It was gradual, but there was always an emphasis on Wren in Lei's mind, which led to the predictability of their relationship. I honestly think the story would have had the same effect if Lei and Wren were close friends. I think female friendship is a much stronger and more powerful message than representation.
Girls of Paper and Fire wasn't terrible, but it wasn't exactly my favorite either.
I did enjoy it, but it took a while for me to get in to the story.
This story is heavily inspired by Asian culture, which is interesting all in itself. The dynamics between the different castes in this society is no surprise. I found myself struggling to comprehend a lot of the demon-esce features of the characters and how it affected the story. I think that was where I fell short.
There was something I really appreciated about the book, Lei was not the chosen one. Authors frequently use the "chosen one" trope throughout their stories. In Girls of Paper and Fire, Lei is not the one who is supposed to assassinate the King, her girlfriend is. I appreciated that so much because it was interesting to see the selfless way Lei worried about Wren rather than coping with the stress of being the chosen one. It was so refreshing. Even though she "killed" the king in the end, it was still nice to see her as not the chosen one.
It is not my favorite thing to read about same sex love, it's my personal preference. This book did have a girl and girl romance, and I actually thought it added to the story. It was gradual, but there was always an emphasis on Wren in Lei's mind, which led to the predictability of their relationship. I honestly think the story would have had the same effect if Lei and Wren were close friends. I think female friendship is a much stronger and more powerful message than representation.
Girls of Paper and Fire wasn't terrible, but it wasn't exactly my favorite either.