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angietheace's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Homophobia, Violence, Blood, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Racism
anarmandameg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Torture, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Pregnancy, Outing, and Sexual harassment
thestarlesscasea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Outing
veggiestrawenjoyer13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault and Blood
lanid's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Moderate: Body horror, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
emreads0's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
When Jess starts hearing a voice in her head, she thinks she is going crazy. It is her grandmother, Ah Ma, who is aggressive and stubborn to say the least. Jess is sent on a wild and dangerous journey to learn more about her family, fighting people and gods to find out the truth.
Jess being gay was the most frustrating part of the story, for good and bad. The author wanted to show how homophobic older generations can be, but it was used more as a plot device more than anything. We see that Jess is scared to come out because of how her family will react. It is even an issue the god, Black Water Sister, points out to Jess in a nightmare. So why the fuck is it never answered in the story? We are left to wonder about it even though it was a huge part of Jess's fears and area of possible growth.
Graphic: Homophobia, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Sexual assault
vezreads's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Blood, and Murder
lilifane's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
First of all, this is definitely not YA. I don't even know why I thought it was? And then after a lighthearted and funny beginning, the story gets pretty dark and intense and violent. But also in a good way. I really liked the characters, the protagonist was very relatable, the dynamics between her and the ghost hilarious. The writing style, especially the dialogues, might need some time to get used when you're not the child of immigrants. But since I am, it felt familiar (even if the languages are totally different in my case).
Loved the atmosphere and how ghosts, spirits and gods played such a big part in the plot and every day life of the characters. Also, loved the themes that were explored in a raw and brutal way. Like having an identity crisis, being torn between your family and your own life, coming out to a traditional Chinese family, violence against women, sexism, generational trauma, unresolved hate and revenge. But there are some hard scenes towards the end, so I recommend checking trigger warnings.
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Outing
Minor: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Car accident, Murder, Pregnancy, and Outing
flyingryndeer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Medical trauma
Minor: Gun violence and Police brutality
leannanecdote's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Injury/Injury detail