A review by buggsbooks
Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel

challenging reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

An interesting read for sure. I found the polyvocal use of narrative voice, and boxing-match structure to be the backbone of this book. Without this, it wouldn't have worked so well, and may have veered on dull. The internality of the book was it's driving factor which, for someone who could not care less about boxing, kept me turning the pages. I especially loved the perfectionism of izzy and deliberate weirdness of Iggy as devices to dominate their matches. I enjoyed the omniscient narrative moments, where we would find out the future of each of these teens, almost rendering the match itself futile against life's longevity. Though enjoyable, at times it felt like the author didn't know what her intentions were. Definitely enjoyable but definitely not a fave.