bibliotequeish's review against another edition
3.0
This cover is one of my favorites of the year.
The story opens with Gwendolyn waking up in the hospital, her sister Estelle has killed her entire family.
Poison.
Gwendolyn the sole survivor, looks back on her life with her sister trying to piece together the mystery of why did her sister do what she did.
This book had an unassuming intensity to it.
It was quite slow moving, but the crawl is what made it so haunting.
*this advanced reader copy was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
The story opens with Gwendolyn waking up in the hospital, her sister Estelle has killed her entire family.
Poison.
Gwendolyn the sole survivor, looks back on her life with her sister trying to piece together the mystery of why did her sister do what she did.
This book had an unassuming intensity to it.
It was quite slow moving, but the crawl is what made it so haunting.
*this advanced reader copy was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
marcccb's review against another edition
1.0
A pretty cover and an interesting premise, but and I read about forty pages before realizing that I couldn't really get into it. Sadly, it wasn't for me.
romanticparvenu's review against another edition
4.0
A slow-moving literary thriller(ish) about a dysfunctional family of Chinese-Indonesian tycoons and their various secrets. The twist ending was perhaps not entirely well executed, but still good. Satisfying conclusion.
ejpinder's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
2.5
greyhuigris's review against another edition
3.0
A solid 3.5* book with a 1* ending.
First off, this cover is one of the best book covers I've seen in years, and reading a library copy, I was planning on purchasing my own after I finished... but then that ending changed my mind.
This nothing like [b:Crazy Rich Asians|16085481|Crazy Rich Asians (Crazy Rich Asians, #1)|Kevin Kwan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1364852559l/16085481._SY75_.jpg|21571970]. The similarities start and end with the characters being well-to-do 华裔 (people of Chinese ancestry) living in Southeast Asian countries. But where CRA is about the over-the-top extravagance of its characters lives, this reads much more like a character study along the lines of Celeste Ng.
The first chapter opens on the mass poisoning of the family at the center of the novel before jumping back in time and exploring the history that led to that moment. Therein lies the first issue with this book: it can't decide what to be. By opening with such an explosive chapter, I would expect something tighter, maybe along the lines of [b:Big Little Lies|19486412|Big Little Lies|Liane Moriarty|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1492239430l/19486412._SY75_.jpg|27570886]. Instead, the scope was not simply jumping back a week, two weeks, months, but instead to the childhood of the two sisters Estella and Doll. Going so far back, all tension was just lost, and it took a good chunk of the book to find its pacing again. By the time any of the story really starts to feel relevant, a third of the book has passed, and that third is quite dry.
I can't really give much information about the plot without divulging any spoilers, but I can say that aside from the first and last five pages, this book was a slow burn, and because of that, the whole idea of framing it as a thriller feels almost like cheating the reader, especially because despite being slow and a little dry in places, there is some really beautiful writing that ultimately may not find its way to the type of reader who would appreciate it. Along with this, the framing of it as a thriller led to the ending which
TLDR: This book can't decide if it wants to be a thriller or "literature" and in the process fails at being either.
First off, this cover is one of the best book covers I've seen in years, and reading a library copy, I was planning on purchasing my own after I finished... but then that ending changed my mind.
This nothing like [b:Crazy Rich Asians|16085481|Crazy Rich Asians (Crazy Rich Asians, #1)|Kevin Kwan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1364852559l/16085481._SY75_.jpg|21571970]. The similarities start and end with the characters being well-to-do 华裔 (people of Chinese ancestry) living in Southeast Asian countries. But where CRA is about the over-the-top extravagance of its characters lives, this reads much more like a character study along the lines of Celeste Ng.
The first chapter opens on the mass poisoning of the family at the center of the novel before jumping back in time and exploring the history that led to that moment. Therein lies the first issue with this book: it can't decide what to be. By opening with such an explosive chapter, I would expect something tighter, maybe along the lines of [b:Big Little Lies|19486412|Big Little Lies|Liane Moriarty|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1492239430l/19486412._SY75_.jpg|27570886]. Instead, the scope was not simply jumping back a week, two weeks, months, but instead to the childhood of the two sisters Estella and Doll. Going so far back, all tension was just lost, and it took a good chunk of the book to find its pacing again. By the time any of the story really starts to feel relevant, a third of the book has passed, and that third is quite dry.
I can't really give much information about the plot without divulging any spoilers, but I can say that aside from the first and last five pages, this book was a slow burn, and because of that, the whole idea of framing it as a thriller feels almost like cheating the reader, especially because despite being slow and a little dry in places, there is some really beautiful writing that ultimately may not find its way to the type of reader who would appreciate it. Along with this, the framing of it as a thriller led to the ending which
Spoiler
was one of the worst things I've probably ever read. There was literally no reason to have a twist ending, and if there had to be a twist, why make it one that would be obvious in a thriller? Why not try to go for something more interesting or unique? By making the two sisters actually be the same person, it ruined what would have been something of literary value by turning into yet another trashy domestic thrillerTLDR: This book can't decide if it wants to be a thriller or "literature" and in the process fails at being either.
andrearbooks's review against another edition
3.0
The Majesties by Tiffany Tsao was so different than what I was expecting. The story begins with Gwendolyn's older sister Estella poisoning and killing their entire family. From this gathering, Estella is the only survivor. The story then treks back through what got things to this point. What I thought was going to be a thriller was really a story about the complexities of family and relationships. Estella goes back through her memories as she wonders which event was a tipping point. The stuff that happens throughout is kind of a bummer. There are bridges that have been burned (figuratively), frustrations with love (or lack thereof) and strained relationships. Again, this isn't so much a thriller, but a dramatic trek through stuff in life that really takes a toll on someone. That said, this is a heavy read. It's beautifully written throughout, and the words used painted such captivating pictures. Story aside, that beauty made this one worth the read. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my review.
annakelly's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
pazzzza92's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0