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t0rixoxo's review against another edition
lowkey just wasnt feeling it. i like the concept but it wasnt executed well imo. the switch between email and real life didn’t do it for me, and some of the “emails” didnt feel like a recollection of what had happened, more like it was telling what was currently happening.
Content Warnings
Minor: Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
zari_safari's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage
pucksandpaperbacks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
CW: HP and JKR reference, Alzheimer's, ableism, miscarriage, sexual harassment
A great debut full of family drama and family history. The main character was such a realistic teen as she made teenage-like mistakes and I liked her growth throughout the story seeing her learn about her mother that she has a rocky relationship with. I also liked and thought it was a smart writing decision to have the book written in epistolary format since it has to do with the media and as she finds the diary entries that lead her to more information about her family's history.
As this is co-written, I thought it was a unique approach because most co-written words have dual POV but this has a single POV. I'm excited to read more from these authors!
A great debut full of family drama and family history. The main character was such a realistic teen as she made teenage-like mistakes and I liked her growth throughout the story seeing her learn about her mother that she has a rocky relationship with. I also liked and thought it was a smart writing decision to have the book written in epistolary format since it has to do with the media and as she finds the diary entries that lead her to more information about her family's history.
As this is co-written, I thought it was a unique approach because most co-written words have dual POV but this has a single POV. I'm excited to read more from these authors!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Miscarriage, and Sexual harassment
kie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage
displacedcactus's review against another edition
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
If you are specifically looking for something to complete the Haiti prompt in the StoryGraph Reads the World challenge, you could do worse than choosing this book. It has a few things going for it in that regard:
1. It's a very brisk and easy read, great if you're trying to complete your prompts as the year winds down around us.
2. The story does deal with some heavy subjects (well-detailed in the content warnings here on SG), but the tone overall is pretty bright and there's no graphic, explicit on-page content.
3. The story weaves together a lightly revised version of Haiti's history, its current state, and the diaspora experience. I feel like this really fits the spirit of the Reads the World challenge, as the idea was to get to know other countries that we might not encounter in our usual reading and media consumption.
If you're not reading for the challenge, I can't give it a very strong recommendation. I didn't particularly click with Alaine as a narrator, and a couple of elements of the story didn't sit right with me (getting into them would involve really spoiling the end of the story). The romance element felt tacked-on and poorly fleshed out (I say this as a romance reader, who enjoys a good romantic subplot in any sort of fiction), and at times it felt like there was simultaneously too much going on, and nothing happening.
Your mileage may vary, which is why I don't give books star ratings. I suspect a lot of readers will immediately love Alaine and enjoy spending a few hundred pages in her company. If you're curious about this book, go ahead and find a sample online and you should know pretty quickly if this is a book you'll enjoy reading, though you may still share my quibbles with the end.
1. It's a very brisk and easy read, great if you're trying to complete your prompts as the year winds down around us.
2. The story does deal with some heavy subjects (well-detailed in the content warnings here on SG), but the tone overall is pretty bright and there's no graphic, explicit on-page content.
3. The story weaves together a lightly revised version of Haiti's history, its current state, and the diaspora experience. I feel like this really fits the spirit of the Reads the World challenge, as the idea was to get to know other countries that we might not encounter in our usual reading and media consumption.
If you're not reading for the challenge, I can't give it a very strong recommendation. I didn't particularly click with Alaine as a narrator, and a couple of elements of the story didn't sit right with me (getting into them would involve really spoiling the end of the story). The romance element felt tacked-on and poorly fleshed out (I say this as a romance reader, who enjoys a good romantic subplot in any sort of fiction), and at times it felt like there was simultaneously too much going on, and nothing happening.
Your mileage may vary, which is why I don't give books star ratings. I suspect a lot of readers will immediately love Alaine and enjoy spending a few hundred pages in her company. If you're curious about this book, go ahead and find a sample online and you should know pretty quickly if this is a book you'll enjoy reading, though you may still share my quibbles with the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Dementia
Minor: Animal death, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault
moonytoast's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.25
I'm so happy that I happened upon this book by chance.... There were so many moments where I was surprisingly on the edge of my seat, which isn't a frequent occurrence for me with young adult contemporary fiction. I won't go into details, but I think the Moulite sisters weave a lovely, engaging epistolary novel about coming of age and family. Recently, I've been wondering if I'm just too old to enjoy young adult contemporary fiction as much as I previously did, but this book proved me wrong.
My favorite aspect of this book was the writing style. I've made it no secret that I generally prefer third person narration, but Maika and Maritza Moulite use the first person point of view to their advantage and create a Distinct Character Voice™ that helps to further build out Alaine as a protagonist.
My favorite aspect of this book was the writing style. I've made it no secret that I generally prefer third person narration, but Maika and Maritza Moulite use the first person point of view to their advantage and create a Distinct Character Voice™ that helps to further build out Alaine as a protagonist.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage and Dementia
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Medical content
Minor: Death
sarah984's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I really liked the idea of this book, but the execution was lacking for me.
First off, things I liked. It was interesting to see a YA where the main character has divorced parents who still have a decent relationship. Both parents were supportive in their own way and had interesting stories. I liked the idea of Alaine going to Haiti to understand her history, and the way the country and culture were described was great.
Things I didn't like: Alaine is supposed to be 17 but she's very immature and babyish so it makes her relationship with a "college boy" seem skeevier than it is. The idea of her including the flirty slack messages in her final project is absurd. The embezzlement plotline felt unnecessary and the culprit is the one person who acts suspiciously. The adults all have interesting stories that are barely delved into. Rosaline in particular is more plot device than person. The tone in general is a wild pendulum between silly teen antics and very serious subject matter (not just the mom’s Alzheimers but another character dies out of nowhere and this is handled in an absolutely bizarre manner). The whole family curse plotline felt kind of pointless (especially having so recently read <i>When You Trap a Tiger</i> which did this better) and I would have liked to see more of Alaine’s work with the Patron Pal app and kids instead.
First off, things I liked. It was interesting to see a YA where the main character has divorced parents who still have a decent relationship. Both parents were supportive in their own way and had interesting stories. I liked the idea of Alaine going to Haiti to understand her history, and the way the country and culture were described was great.
Things I didn't like: Alaine is supposed to be 17 but she's very immature and babyish so it makes her relationship with a "college boy" seem skeevier than it is. The idea of her including the flirty slack messages in her final project is absurd. The embezzlement plotline felt unnecessary and the culprit is the one person who acts suspiciously. The adults all have interesting stories that are barely delved into. Rosaline in particular is more plot device than person. The tone in general is a wild pendulum between silly teen antics and very serious subject matter
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Miscarriage, Slavery, Terminal illness, Grief, Pregnancy, and Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Drug use, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Alcohol
lyricallit's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
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
4.0
Alaine is a vibrant, engaging character! I loved hearing the language and accents in the audiobook, but I did wish I had a brief written reference for some of the Haitian historical figures. I appreciate how the authors were able to weave in Haiti's history in a way that was accessible for white Americans who probably have no experience with it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage and Dementia
Moderate: Sexual assault
amandalorianxo's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
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
Merry Christmas Eve! 😍🎄 In all seriousness, I wanted to highlight this book not only because of the gorgeous cover and red backdrop but also the importance of having representation about countries that aren’t as saturated in the fiction world (ya or not.) This particular story takes places partially in my home state of Florida and also in Haiti where our MC Alaine goes for roughly two months after her private Catholic school lets her parents knows that the presentation she conducted did not turn out as proper as was assumed. We as readers get snippets of texts, letters, emails, phone calls and more so this isn’t written like a plain traditional novel. Alaine is seventeen and of course, is portrayed like any first generation American teenager whose immigrant family tells her she is going to the homeland- not thrilled in the slightest. But while on the island, Alaine learns a plethora of new discoveries about where she comes from and the pride that the people of Haiti have in being Haitian. There’s a little snip of a romance but that takes the backburn in favor of Alaine and her mother attempting to salvage an already weak standing relationship when Alaine discovers the ailement her mother is going through. I highly recommend this novel for those that are wanting to learn a little more about Haiti but want to start on the smaller scale. I also love the family relationships and how authentic everyone is as far as their personalities. @maikamoulite & @maritzamoulite keep it 100% real and I can’t wait to read more stories written by them !
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Grief
Minor: Miscarriage and Sexual assault
erin_curry's review against another edition
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault