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fairymaiden20's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I previously read Wild Beauty and fell in love with Anna Marie McLemore's writing style and romances. BUT I think you can definitely tell this is their debut novel. I was really enjoying it until.... you find out the love interests who have been having this fairly passionate love affair are.... cousins. 😨❓❓ I was shocked and appalled. I felt tricked almost bc I was pretty invested in their romance and now I just feel icky for even having read and enjoyed the past chapters 😭😭. And the romance didn't stop after they found out, either. 😨 That's maybe the least romantic plot twist ever. And it made me feel like my trust was being betrayed 😪. I miss the person I was before the plot twist 💔 , but please don't let this discourage you from reading other books by Anna Marie McLemore, because they're truly super talented and they've come super far since this book was released.
The author's note was incredibly touching as well.
The author's note was incredibly touching as well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, and Xenophobia
durrareadsstuff's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Stories—the ones we speak, the ones we read, the ones we write down-make us human to each other. Fiction, however made-up, makes us real to each other. Stories take us past slurs and stereotypes, and into the deep ocean of understanding that every person, real or imagined, cannot be reduced to a word or a few words.
I've been staring into the abyss for hours now. This was just so beautifully written and the story itself was so tragic. This book reminded my why I loved reading so much, of how much fiction can teach you and make you understand things.
I went into this thinking it's gonna be some retelling of romeo and juliet with a hint of magic in it, nothing too heavy. And it is, the love story of lace and cluck and their families do resemble the Shakespeare classic, but also it deals heavily with racism, family problems and prejudice and understanding. I'll be honest though, I took some time to wrap my head around the plot, I feel like the words twist you around and around but all that is somewhat necessary to achieve the depth of the actual story and the beauty of it. Granted, I am not much of a fan of books with romance as their main plotline, so maybe that's why I got lost a little bit.
Also another thing worth noting : the chapters are so short!! And the sayings in french and spanish at every chapter are so cool. I think this is a much needed fiction—to understand how racism came to be, how some people grew up with it and can't help but see others in a different light, how they were taught to see others to "protect themselves". And how by breaking that barrier between them, just by talking and listening to each other, Lace and Cluck escaped the cages their families made for them.
I went into this thinking it's gonna be some retelling of romeo and juliet with a hint of magic in it, nothing too heavy. And it is, the love story of lace and cluck and their families do resemble the Shakespeare classic, but also it deals heavily with racism, family problems and prejudice and understanding. I'll be honest though, I took some time to wrap my head around the plot, I feel like the words twist you around and around but all that is somewhat necessary to achieve the depth of the actual story and the beauty of it. Granted, I am not much of a fan of books with romance as their main plotline, so maybe that's why I got lost a little bit.
Also another thing worth noting : the chapters are so short!! And the sayings in french and spanish at every chapter are so cool. I think this is a much needed fiction—to understand how racism came to be, how some people grew up with it and can't help but see others in a different light, how they were taught to see others to "protect themselves". And how by breaking that barrier between them, just by talking and listening to each other, Lace and Cluck escaped the cages their families made for them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Ableism, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief
Minor: Animal death and Sexual assault