kdelhan 's review for:

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

4.0

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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The

ghost

storyline was a little much and the ending was sort of unsatisfactory. I feel like I was sort of coerced into a morally gray area, sometimes catching myself feeling bad for June, then was like wait...no she's a horrible person! I think I read this so quickly mostly because it was so uncomfortably tense I just wanted to get through it. Certainly a different definition to what I'd usually consider a "gripping" storyline. I never fully appreciated how toxic the publishing industry is. I hate to agree with June on something, but I (not in the publishing/writing sphere) can see how everyone loses regardless of their race or marginalized/minority identities, a catch 22. I can't tell if I liked or hated this book, or liked how much I hated it? Either way, I think it's definitely worth reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, Toxic friendship