Reviews

I really enjoyed the first half of the book but I was unfortunately so bored in the second half. It was an intriguing story, unlike anything I’ve read before, but got less interesting along the way.

cernunnos's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

scott_thelibrarian's review against another edition

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2.0

Pros: This book tackles difficult yet important topics like systemic racism, religious hypocrisy, homophobia, immigration, adapting to a new society/environment, and homosexuality. It does a good job of addressing these issues in a relatable and realistic fashion without trivializing these topics.

Cons: The plotting was disjointed and funky, and the transitions from one time period to the other do not flow well. Every time the story jumped forward in time, it felt like the author forgot to mention a topic during a previous situation, so he would find something in the present that related to a past situation. This made it difficult to stay engaged. By the end, I felt like I read the beginning and middle of a story without an ending. Also, I love references to music, but I think the author used music references as a crutch to fill in plotting gaps.

Honestly, I wanted to like this more than I did, and I feel like it is overhyped.

ladyvictoriadiana's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring fast-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? It's complicated

3.75

robinpawley's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad fast-paced

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? No

5.0

katebull's review against another edition

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1.0

This oscillates between uncomfortable sexual assault and broad strokes about BLM. The sentences are badly written and the musical references are heavy-handed.

lisettemarie's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5 stars rounded down. I really enjoyed the first 2/3 of the book. However the last 1/3 I felt like jumped so far ahead in time and didn’t give enough of a summary of the years in between and they felt rushed to tie everything up at the end it just didn’t feel very satisfying but the character of Jesse felt so real and I felt a lot of empathy for him

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