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kutreen's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
It was really refreshing to read a book with a main character who is not just imperfect in a quirky way, but flawed in a deep way. I think most people can relate to at least one of Ivy's dark feelings or thought processes, which are too taboo to talk to people about, probably even to your best friend. Yang delves into the parts of Ivy -- and ourselves -- that are too shameful to talk about, but also so central to the way we approach and walk through life. The same raw honesty was present in Yang's writing about Ivy's family, which has real problems that aren't easily resolved -- like in real life! Bottom line: I love how real this book is. I admire Yang's vulnerability in pulling these feelings and thoughts out of her head and sharing them with us. I also appreciate the non-russian Eastern European representation :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Drug use, Eating disorder, Medical content, Murder, and Alcohol
alicelalicon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying
stephbakerbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was a fascinating book that kept me interested and surprised me—I really had no clue where it was going and then when certain things happened, my face was 😳😱😬 The book spans several years of Ivy’s life, as she navigates being a Chinese immigrant and trying to fit in to white America.
So I liked the plot, the pacing was good, and the different experiences between Ivy’s grandmother, her mother, and Ivy herself made for some interesting comparisons, especially when looking at their reasons for certain choices.
Ivy is not a very likable character, nor is Gideon and his family, nor is really anyone in this book. I wasn’t really rooting for anyone to find their happy ending here—I was reading more for the drama and the little mysteries peppered throughout, and siding more with Ivy’s parents than Ivy as the book went on.
That being said, even though Ivy is unlikable, I still felt sorry for her for most of the book. I’ll be wondering for a while if she’ll ever be satisfied with her life…
This was excellent on audio, and thank you to Libro.fm, Simon Audio, and the author for this ALC.
Read if you like: family dramas, matchmaking schemes, the Queen of Genovia but she teaches you to be a thief instead of a princess, cunning characters.
So I liked the plot, the pacing was good, and the different experiences between Ivy’s grandmother, her mother, and Ivy herself made for some interesting comparisons, especially when looking at their reasons for certain choices.
Ivy is not a very likable character, nor is Gideon and his family, nor is really anyone in this book. I wasn’t really rooting for anyone to find their happy ending here—I was reading more for the drama and the little mysteries peppered throughout, and siding more with Ivy’s parents than Ivy as the book went on.
That being said, even though Ivy is unlikable, I still felt sorry for her for most of the book. I’ll be wondering for a while if she’ll ever be satisfied with her life…
This was excellent on audio, and thank you to Libro.fm, Simon Audio, and the author for this ALC.
Read if you like: family dramas, matchmaking schemes, the Queen of Genovia but she teaches you to be a thief instead of a princess, cunning characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Physical abuse
Moderate: Sexual content
madlads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is a rollercoaster of a book. I was about halfway through and like hm, thought it was going to be more thrillery, but was still really interested and then got to the last section and bam! Really engaging book, keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time,highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Homophobia
whatannikareads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
YOOOOO THIS WAS ACTUALLY SO GOOD?
i thought white ivy was such a captivating read. ivy is a very vain girl who grew up fairly poor, wanting to fit in with the rich kids of the white suburb a block over. she has a crush on this golden white boy, gideon, and tries to get his attention. however, her mom catches wind of her liking boys (interfering with her studies), thus sending her to china to spend time with her aunts. this essentially cuts off her chance with gideon and her friendship with roux, a romanian boy who she strikes a sort of friendship with consisting of stealing and lying.
fast forward and a decade goes by before they re-enter her life but in very different circumstances and their storylines get intertwined.
this. book. is. so. addicting. the writing itself is so beautiful and articulate. it raises questions about the characters that made me think as i hadn't noticed the details, and then sort of discussed possibilities and what not after, which i appreciated.
one thing going into this: ivy is not a likable character and i don't believe she is meant to be. but i loved how her and her family portrayed a familiar asian american family but with much more realistic complexities—not just being a fob or a rich transplant like the typical tropes. ivy's personality isn't based solely on her ethnicity, and while she isn't a very good person, you can't (at least I couldn't) stop reading about her, almost like observing a creature in a glass case.
i also loved that the love triangle plays upon typical tropes but also makes each guy's personalities complex as well so it's not obvious who you're supposed to root for. some people like me may enter this saying, 'ugh not another asian girl liking a white guy,' but i think this story couldn't have been done any other way otherwise, as it is a commentary on race and class and is very specific to THAT sort of white generational wealth vs. new money.
I ENJOYED THIS SO MUCH i couldn't put it down once i picked it up. each character made me skeptical (because of the questions susie throws in) of their intentions and what was bubbling underneath. i figured out the *major thing* right before it happened and gasped when it actually happened. i also was completely blindsided by the *plot twist* but i loved how it made me sit and have to reevaluate everything i just read. i think some people may not vibe with the ending, but i enjoyed it! it was a sort of sweet release—not necessarily good for you, but you couldn't give lesser of a fuck because yup! life sort of sucks ass and at the end of the day, we're all humans and you're not any better than me! i'm the only one who can look out for myself!
i thought white ivy was such a captivating read. ivy is a very vain girl who grew up fairly poor, wanting to fit in with the rich kids of the white suburb a block over. she has a crush on this golden white boy, gideon, and tries to get his attention. however, her mom catches wind of her liking boys (interfering with her studies), thus sending her to china to spend time with her aunts. this essentially cuts off her chance with gideon and her friendship with roux, a romanian boy who she strikes a sort of friendship with consisting of stealing and lying.
fast forward and a decade goes by before they re-enter her life but in very different circumstances and their storylines get intertwined.
this. book. is. so. addicting. the writing itself is so beautiful and articulate. it raises questions about the characters that made me think as i hadn't noticed the details, and then sort of discussed possibilities and what not after, which i appreciated.
one thing going into this: ivy is not a likable character and i don't believe she is meant to be. but i loved how her and her family portrayed a familiar asian american family but with much more realistic complexities—not just being a fob or a rich transplant like the typical tropes. ivy's personality isn't based solely on her ethnicity, and while she isn't a very good person, you can't (at least I couldn't) stop reading about her, almost like observing a creature in a glass case.
i also loved that the love triangle plays upon typical tropes but also makes each guy's personalities complex as well so it's not obvious who you're supposed to root for. some people like me may enter this saying, 'ugh not another asian girl liking a white guy,' but i think this story couldn't have been done any other way otherwise, as it is a commentary on race and class and is very specific to THAT sort of white generational wealth vs. new money.
I ENJOYED THIS SO MUCH i couldn't put it down once i picked it up. each character made me skeptical (because of the questions susie throws in) of their intentions and what was bubbling underneath. i figured out the *major thing* right before it happened and gasped when it actually happened. i also was completely blindsided by the *plot twist* but i loved how it made me sit and have to reevaluate everything i just read. i think some people may not vibe with the ending, but i enjoyed it! it was a sort of sweet release—not necessarily good for you, but you couldn't give lesser of a fuck because yup! life sort of sucks ass and at the end of the day, we're all humans and you're not any better than me! i'm the only one who can look out for myself!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, and Blood
deedireads's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
White Ivy is a sharp, almost dark, and surprising book about a woman who will go to any lengths to get what she wants. Dramatic yet honest, it also has an ending that will drop your jaw.
For you if: You like contemporary novels that bring the drama and aren’t afraid to point out uncomfortable truths.
FULL REVIEW:
Big thanks to Simon & Schuster for sending me an advanced review copy!
White Ivy is an impressive debut, and I enjoyed it even though it isn’t the type of book I typically read. I don’t tend to gravitate toward dramatic contemporary novels featuring unlikeable characters who make terrible choices lol. But here, Susie Yang takes that kind of story and stares at you from the pages while she’s telling it, never looking away even when you break eye contact. She finds the squirmiest moments of social norms and expectations and says them bluntly, which is somehow both refreshing and even more squirmy. It was fascinating.
The story is about a girl named Ivy, the daughter of Chinese immigrants who just desperately wants to break away from them. After a somewhat rebellious childhood, she’s reconnected with her rich grade-school crush years later, and they start dating. It’s everything she’s ever wanted. Or is it? Can she have life both ways? Ivy will do, say, and become whatever it takes to get what she wants, even if she doesn’t always know what that is. The book is about class and desire and family and social norms, and the simultaneous adherence to and rebellion against all those things.
I won’t say that I didn’t waver a few times in the middle, wondering if this book was for me, given how sort of terrible Ivy and some of the secondary characters are. But I’m really glad I pushed through to the end, because THAT ENDING. There was one part I definitely couldn’t have seen coming that dropped my jaw, swiftly followed by something that I can’t BELIEVE I didn’t see coming.
If you read for enjoyment/plot alone and don’t like to read about unlikeable characters, then I’m not sure this one is for you. But if you seek out books that do really interesting things from a character and storytelling perspective, and you’re willing to hang in there to experience it and see it pay off, then I recommend it.
TRIGGER WARNINGS:
Sexual harassment; Depression; Suicidal thoughts (brief); Fat phobia
TL;DR REVIEW:
White Ivy is a sharp, almost dark, and surprising book about a woman who will go to any lengths to get what she wants. Dramatic yet honest, it also has an ending that will drop your jaw.
For you if: You like contemporary novels that bring the drama and aren’t afraid to point out uncomfortable truths.
FULL REVIEW:
Big thanks to Simon & Schuster for sending me an advanced review copy!
White Ivy is an impressive debut, and I enjoyed it even though it isn’t the type of book I typically read. I don’t tend to gravitate toward dramatic contemporary novels featuring unlikeable characters who make terrible choices lol. But here, Susie Yang takes that kind of story and stares at you from the pages while she’s telling it, never looking away even when you break eye contact. She finds the squirmiest moments of social norms and expectations and says them bluntly, which is somehow both refreshing and even more squirmy. It was fascinating.
The story is about a girl named Ivy, the daughter of Chinese immigrants who just desperately wants to break away from them. After a somewhat rebellious childhood, she’s reconnected with her rich grade-school crush years later, and they start dating. It’s everything she’s ever wanted. Or is it? Can she have life both ways? Ivy will do, say, and become whatever it takes to get what she wants, even if she doesn’t always know what that is. The book is about class and desire and family and social norms, and the simultaneous adherence to and rebellion against all those things.
I won’t say that I didn’t waver a few times in the middle, wondering if this book was for me, given how sort of terrible Ivy and some of the secondary characters are. But I’m really glad I pushed through to the end, because THAT ENDING. There was one part I definitely couldn’t have seen coming that dropped my jaw, swiftly followed by something that I can’t BELIEVE I didn’t see coming.
If you read for enjoyment/plot alone and don’t like to read about unlikeable characters, then I’m not sure this one is for you. But if you seek out books that do really interesting things from a character and storytelling perspective, and you’re willing to hang in there to experience it and see it pay off, then I recommend it.
TRIGGER WARNINGS:
Sexual harassment; Depression; Suicidal thoughts (brief); Fat phobia
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts