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A review by gotoboston
Malice by Pintip Dunn
1.0
I just decided to power through this and read this all today since I haven't been in the mood to read much this week and might get busy with school.
Overall, this book was okay. I don't know. It was just so... Meh? It's hard to get behind these teenagers being brilliant and science geeks when none of them talk like it. They're all very typical teenagers for the cream of the crop brilliant students.
I wanted to be pleased by the representation, but this book is such a mess in terms of actual character development and plot development that I just can't bring myself to be happy about the small good things about this book. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book.
Edit:
I have lowered my rating to a one-star rating. After a lot of thought, I genuinely had to come back to this and say that I just can't give this book any points for what it did right. Were there some good things? Yes. One, it's really short. Two, Bandit. Three, all of the Asian culture and representation is amazing.
Those three things are not enough to make up for the fact that
I know the author was maybe trying to say something about self-sacrifice and the meaning of hope, but that's not what I got from it at all. And therefore, that makes me believe this book was poorly executed.
Overall, this book was okay. I don't know. It was just so... Meh? It's hard to get behind these teenagers being brilliant and science geeks when none of them talk like it. They're all very typical teenagers for the cream of the crop brilliant students.
Spoiler
Archie is probably the worst character in this book in terms of characterization. He has so little development that I genuinely didn't care about his big end of the book reveal or his reasoning. It was so INCEL-esque logic that it was a bit cringe-y honestly.I wanted to be pleased by the representation, but this book is such a mess in terms of actual character development and plot development that I just can't bring myself to be happy about the small good things about this book. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book.
Edit:
I have lowered my rating to a one-star rating. After a lot of thought, I genuinely had to come back to this and say that I just can't give this book any points for what it did right. Were there some good things? Yes. One, it's really short. Two, Bandit. Three, all of the Asian culture and representation is amazing.
Those three things are not enough to make up for the fact that
Spoiler
this book ends with what I think is a really disgusting trope that the teen male character who blames everyone else for abandoning him and gets moody and throws a temper tantrum (and he did have at least one person genuinely abandon him, I'll give him that), is in reality the one who's making his own life miserable as he's the one that never makes an effort to reach out or be kind. Yes, let's all bend the world for the poor male who can't be bother with social niceties like eating dinner with his sister, or I don't know, just talking to people? I get social anxiety can be a bitch. I have it. I wouldn't end the world because I blame everyone else for my failings. And it's such a white/male perspective that the world should just work for you whether it's the girl you want liking you, or your sister always taking care of you and putting all her own wants and needs aside to be your constant caretaker, and so on. It's just an ugly sentiment and that ugly sentiment never gets addressed meaningfully. Instead, they make HIM the hero, and that magically fixes it. Ugh, no.I know the author was maybe trying to say something about self-sacrifice and the meaning of hope, but that's not what I got from it at all. And therefore, that makes me believe this book was poorly executed.