weak pick, because while I was largely entertained by this one, I can‘t say I was all that impressed :/ I read the whole thing in a sitting, so the usual intrigue and pace of Flynn was as interesting as ever. I predicted the outcome very early on though… Still. Seeing HOW it all came together was as fun as learning whodunnit :)

I couldnt put it down!!! This was recommended to me by my partner‘s brother who insisted “its not like a rom-com, it‘s like,, an exploration of a person through the different loves she had.” He was absolutely right. It‘s well-balanced, heartfelt, and charming, and I‘ve already recommended it to three more people lol.

I hate leaving bad reviews :(

I rather hoped that Ming would subvert this genre that has such a racist reputation but woe. I found it reeking of cliche from the damsel in distress to the blind prophet to the brooding cowboy hero. The writing style was rambling and impersonal and tedious. The plot was predictable and boring. None of the characters had any personality therefore no chemistry. Vapid shallow prose that a 14yo might find moving.

:(

Joyfully chaotic is right! I don‘t have much to say for it besides it was a easy, low-maintenance, YA read. A palette-cleanser :)

…and crushed the last 400 pages in 3 days!
What I liked: thematically… unique. Such a brutal and riotous excursion into trauma and what it does to a person. Rich characters and BEAUTIFUL descriptions of love in all its forms.
Less so: intermittently waffles between dreadfully shocking and dreadfully tedious. It‘s more character than plot, and the times between these dreadful ones were masterful, but often extremed too much for me :/

400pp in and I think I‘m gonna take a break. It‘s so masterfully crafted— the construction of themes is top-tier— but the themes are constructed in a way to either fill you with dread or completely gut you. It‘s less “setup-and-payoff” and more “setup-and-floor you.” My sister has read the book before so it‘s fun to commiserate with her about it. Definitely gonna put something lighter info the mix!

If you like romance/heterodrama, rumor mills, and ogling at celebrity wealth, you‘d like this book. My major criticism is I wish the characters‘ personalities were described with the same richness (ha!) as the food and clothes. I had a hard time believing their actions beyond “the plot says so.” This book is totally opposite of what I like to read, but not poorly written. For me it‘s a pan, but I‘d be curious to hear from folks who liked it :)

I really wanted to like this book because I LOVE being asexual 🖤🤍💜 but I found myself pretty frustrated with this book. I was hoping Georgia would have a moment of “my whole life makes sense now” and it would feel a lot prouder. Instead, the book focused on the dramas of experimentation and the frustration of being different.

an important book for YA (even college) for ace awareness but not the most well-written or optimistic coming of age :/

This book had me at “genderqueer cowboys” and only continued to impress me. While rushed in some parts, I felt that the plot escalated very naturally. The pace didn‘t feel forced, even for a ~260 page book :) I loved the character dynamics, and the explorations of what it means to be different, define yourself, and find community (even amongst outlaws!) Top tier pick for me personally :)

So— I THOUGHT i knew a lot about this book going into it… Even with a handful of spoilers and a rather detailed back cover, this book still surprised me over and over. Nicely-paced and easy to read, wildly intricate plot, and some lovable characters. The book covers drug abuse, bigotry, violence, sexual assault, grief… but it‘s not presented in an overly-visceral way. its a remarkably easy and compelling read with complex topics

A real change-up compared to what I‘ve been reading, this book is just… fun. Shockingly anticlimactic for a book about the apocalypse, but in a doesn‘t-take-itself-too-seriously kind of way. A nice blend of biblical doom and comedic absurdity. Takes a bit of prior knowledge about England and the Bible, but its generally accessible I think, (and the footnotes certainly helped lol!)

I had to sit on this review for a while and decided it as a pick! I have not stopped thinking about this book since I finished it. Wildly intense, emotionally— I think 250-ish pages was a perfect length for it. It‘s a masterful blend of form and function: poetic prose and emotional intensity that‘s well-matched for such an indelible, intimate read.

I dunno. I liked each aspect separately, but not all together. Like the beautiful nature writing, the unique characters, the murder mystery, the romance… I felt like if the book had committed to being “a mystery” or “a romance” or something I might have felt less on the fence. The beautiful writing is SO THERE. I just wasn‘t wholly on board with the choice of genre. It wasn‘t quite for me, but I would definitely recommend it to others :)

Pardon the spelling and the penmanship— I‘m about halfway through the book now. I thought this cartoon from my day journal summarized my thoughts pretty accurately

Started this last night and finished part 1 this morning. It‘s beautifully written and absolutely devastating. It reads more like poetry than a novel with the rich descriptions and different recollections of memories.

While there is a lot to like about the book, it wasn‘t my favorite cup of tea. I liked the pacing and the multiple generations— how people come and go, the struggles the face, their reasons for coming and going… very nuanced and engaging characters!

I didn‘t love the level of sex in the book, and sometimes the book felt like it was summarizing itself during important parts of the plot. All in all, I‘m glad I read it— different than my usual :)

About halfway through this, and so far, so good! Much to learn about Korean culture and history. Strong characters, loads of twists and turns, and very nicely paced.

I can tell that I am not a member of the target audience, mostly in the sense that I am not a mother! I think anyone with a strong sense of family will relate to the characters motivations, but the motherhood aspect is particularly moving, perhaps overwhelming, and very powerful!

Absolutely stellar it‘s literally the two most unhinged characters you can think of playing spy-vs-spy the whole time. The word “r*pe” comes up a few times so if youre sensitive to that, the word is present but there‘s no scenes like that. Mostly its all psychological chess between a married couple in which both are equal parts emotionally unstable and brilliantly sharp and trying to outfox the other in a game of small town —> national politics

This book genuinely saved my life in college and I‘m not even kidding. If you get to part IV of the book and feel like you want to throw it across the room, I‘m pretty sure that‘s the point. Theo‘s life stagnates there, and the book stagnates as well. It‘s meta, and it works, because you really feel what he‘s feeling in those parts of the book. IMO it‘s a top-tier read with a little bit of everything.

Tedious and plotless

The book was insane, and you feel insane reading it. The more you engage with the book, the more insane you get, and the book knows that. That‘s what the book wants.