A review by mishjordn
Chlorine by Jade Song

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.25

I loved the premise of the book, but the storytelling was a bit lacking. I wanted to love this book, especially since it explores asian-american girlhood: trying to fit in, trying to please your parents, while also trying to understand who you are. I think the first half of the book was great, but the ending had too many loose ends. It seemed like there were so many themes in this book that it would be impossible to have a proper closing. I felt that the reason for Ren’s ”transformation” was not believable and I wasn’t empathetic towards her as much as I could have. I also felt that Ren’s desires were hard to understand. She liked Cathy, but her priorities fell on swimming throughout the book but at the end she felt like she had gotten closer to Cathy before it all ended. I found the book resonated with me, especially about asian family dysfunction and dynamics, but this was outshined by the unsatisfying storyline. I would still recommend this book to those starting out on literary fiction, but I wouldn’t say that this was my favorite. Might re-read again.