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bookishkellyn's review
funny
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
While on sabbatical from her self-owned company for Black Travelers (We Outchea), Skye is tracked down by her “kid” (Victoria ‘Vicky’) after the birth mother’s passing. Spending time with Vicky and her guardian (Aunt Faye) makes her realize that she’s in denial about her social needs and forces her to face her attachment issues. Knowing what to do is easy but making changes is the hard part. This was a relatable but hilarious (and unapologetically Black) book. Skye’s hysterically funny internal thoughts had no chill and easily won this book a spot in my ‘Favorites’ category.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Biphobia, Cancer, Drug use, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racism, Transphobia, Vomit, Death of parent, Lesbophobia, and Sexual harassment
taylorsevalia's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Police brutality, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship
eviecheesepuff's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This one is a complicated one.
I really wanted to love this book. The premise was interesting, the diverse list of characters was inspiring and the cover is gorgeous (which is always a plus).
However the way these topics were executed really put me off reading and I struggled to finish the book. I really wanted it to turn around on the second half and so I pushed myself till the end. I regret that now and I wish that I would have dnfed it.
I feel like diversity in a book is a necessity. Everyone is mixed together in this goldfish bowl that is earth. However, this book felt to me like it was trying harder to check every diversity box more than actually invest time and depth on the characters and their struggles. For some reason the few times the author started to do so, her main character (who is a grown adult with her own business) would make terrible decisions and crack jokes about them. I think this was an attempt to lighten the mood, but it actually prevented the few good points made throughout the novel to hit home. It was just like when you’re watching Pirates of the Caribbean and the scene is extremely dramatic but you’re distracted by Jack Sparrow being a fool in the background. I love that on my Disney movies, but not on a novel that advertises itself as social commentary dealing with struggles of queerness and racism.
For example, this book has a Latina trans woman. As a Hispanic woman who emigrated to USA myself, I was expecting to really bond with that character, however shes such a stereotypical Hispanic person that I felt I was being made fun off most of the time. There is not a single sentence she speaks that does not include a Spanish word. I can not talk like that. Hell, not even Gloria from Modern Family does that so often! It was disappointing that I couldn’t see myself in the character targeted to me in a book so full of minorities.
Writing a book is really hard, so before leaving a bad review, I like to research and ask for other people’s opinions before actually making my mind completely, as sometimes it’s hard to see out of one’s bubble. I read passages of this book to my friends. All of them (Hispanic, Black and White) agreed that this book has a really bad habit of villainizing white characters. I understand that there are very real and serious racist issues in the world regarding the mistreatment at the hand of white people and the privilege they have in comparison to others sometimes (I’ve seen instances of this throughout my life), but this book (which was presented to me as a media that was trying to bring light into this issues) is actually, if anything, adding to them. Which sucks because I was really hoping to be able to list this book as a staple of modern social awareness regarding mistreatment of POC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Transphobia, Police brutality, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Lesbophobia, and Cultural appropriation