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A review by crackedspines_
The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre by Robin Talley
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
OVERALL RATING: 2.5/5 stars. I really like the story idea for this book but I did NOT like Melody. There are also quite a few elements that are problematic that really ruined the book for me. The only reason I didn’t DNF this book is because it’s queer.
PLOT: 4/5. I love the whole concept of a cursed theater. But I do not love the way Melody’s friends think it’s at all okay to force her to swear off falling in love. Also, it’s impractical - you can’t control how you feel.
STRUCTURE: 3/5. I like the division of the book into acts and scenes, and I like the documents in between “scenes.” But the intermission was weird and felt like the author was trying to fast-track the book because this is already long for a contemporary (450 pages).
SETTING: 5/5. LOVE the cursed theater so much; I think it’s actually my favorite aspect of the book! I love the school’s entire performing arts wing too.
THEME: 2/5. As much as I loved the theater theme, there was too much problematic stuff for me to like the overall themes. There are several transphobic lines, an HP reference, and too much talk on Melody’s part about other people’s diets. There was also a part where Melody acknowledges that theater’s historically been sexist but does NOTHING to challenge the sexism, which is ridiculous. There was also quite a bit of tokenistic rep which is obviously problematic.
CHARACTERS: 2/5. Melody McIntyre has SUCH a superiority complex, and it’s barely addressed by the end of the book. She thinks that she is so much better than the actors just for of being a member of the crew. This book would be much shorter if you took out all of Melody’s complaints/shit talk about the actors.
PLOT: 4/5. I love the whole concept of a cursed theater. But I do not love the way Melody’s friends think it’s at all okay to force her to swear off falling in love. Also, it’s impractical - you can’t control how you feel.
STRUCTURE: 3/5. I like the division of the book into acts and scenes, and I like the documents in between “scenes.” But the intermission was weird and felt like the author was trying to fast-track the book because this is already long for a contemporary (450 pages).
SETTING: 5/5. LOVE the cursed theater so much; I think it’s actually my favorite aspect of the book! I love the school’s entire performing arts wing too.
THEME: 2/5. As much as I loved the theater theme, there was too much problematic stuff for me to like the overall themes. There are several transphobic lines, an HP reference, and too much talk on Melody’s part about other people’s diets. There was also a part where Melody acknowledges that theater’s historically been sexist but does NOTHING to challenge the sexism, which is ridiculous. There was also quite a bit of tokenistic rep which is obviously problematic.
CHARACTERS: 2/5. Melody McIntyre has SUCH a superiority complex, and it’s barely addressed by the end of the book. She thinks that she is so much better than the actors just for of being a member of the crew. This book would be much shorter if you took out all of Melody’s complaints/shit talk about the actors.