Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee

15 reviews

ghostlyprince's review against another edition

reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Addiction, Alcoholism, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Racism, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Hate crime

Moderate: Grief, Misogyny, Confinement, and Sexism

janiscox's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Couldnt put it down. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Classism, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Body horror, Blood, Deportation, Grief, Police brutality, and Violence

courtneyclouts's review

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring sad 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Bullying, Hate crime, Racism, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Deportation, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Grief, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Religious bigotry

aravenclawlibraryx's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Title: Luck of the Titanic

Author: Stacy Lee

Genre: Historical Young Adult

Format: hardback library book

Star Rating: 2.5 stars

tw: parental death, alcoholism, racism, sexism, death, drowning, drug use

I feel so bad that I didn’t like this book. I’m also disappointed that I didn’t like this book. I have been kind of obsessed with all things relating to the Titanic. I’m not sure why. Sometimes, I get on these kicks. Like right now, it’s Pokemon. So I thought that I would like this book considering what it was about. 

I had a pretty hard time relating to Val, the main character. She’s British Chinese, which I think is awesome. She just really grated on my nerves. I felt she was more of a child than 18 years old. Val very much wanted it to be her way or no way. I understood that she wanted to be with her twin, Jake, but at the same time, she has to realize that Jake wants to do his own thing. He’s allowed to have friends. That part really irritated me. She got upset that he had made friends while he was away on ships. Val just needed to grow up.  

The plot also moved incredibly slowly. There were a lot of day-to-day activities and a lot of Val’s thoughts that took up a lot of page time. The main event, which you all know what it is, doesn’t happen until there are about 100 pages left. It felt super rushed and I was a little confused about what was going on for most of it. Plus the ending made me so mad. I won’t say what it is because of spoilers but let’s just say it’s not a great ending for me anyway. 

Overall, this book left me frustrated. There were a couple of positives, though, that I’ll share. There was a map and diagrams of the Titanic along with a complete character list. This book was also dedicated to the six Chinese men that survived the sinking, so I thought that was nice. But overall, I wasn’t impressed. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Classism, Addiction, Racial slurs, Violence, Drug use, Death, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Grief

Spoiler

at the end of the book, there is the sinking of the titanic.

quillify_'s review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

A vision of the shrewd-eyed Reverend Prigg, thundering on about how God saves the righteous, inserts itself into my head. But if that’s truly the case, why are those people—most lowly immigrants just like us—screaming so loud, I swear even the stars pale at the cry?  

 IN TEARS RIGHT NOW OH MY GOD. I’ve always considered Titanic to be one of the biggest, most heartbreaking tragedies of the real world, and the fact that so many people died to favour the rich boils my blood. So to get to know that there were Chinese passengers onboard too, and that their stories were completely erased due to typical white arrogance and racism was another big blow to my heart. I am so glad this book exists as one  answer to that erasure of history.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, Grief, Blood, Alcoholism, and Sexual harassment

teatimewtrisha's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death of parent, and Racism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, and Grief

rhm04's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad tense 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Confinement, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Sexual assault

thenovelmaura's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad 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

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the eARC of this book! I enjoyed this one and I see why Stacey Lee has such an enthusiastic fanbase. It was fascinating to get a glimpse into what could have been the lives of the eight Chinese passengers who were on the Titanic. It was definitely more of a character-driven novel than a plot-heavy one (I understand why people thought the beginning was slow, and I too grew weary of Valora's many costume changes), with most of the tension coming from the inevitable sinking of the ship. The book's setting is a microcosm of society in the 1910's, with racial and class disparities on full display in the different cabins, treatment from the crew, and seating arrangements at mealtimes.

The relationship between Valora and Jamie was complex and is really what drew me into the story. As twins, they had a deep bond that could be both comforting and painful. They each matured a lot as they struggled to reconcile the sibling they had known growing up with the one that boarded the Titanic. I admired the way Lee chose to end the book, as well as her graceful and informative author's note. While I don't read a lot of YA historical fiction, this author is added to my list of ones to watch!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent and Grief

Minor: Confinement and Sexual assault

hemmr3252's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny inspiring reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, and Racism

Moderate: Alcohol

bookcrushin's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, and Sexism

Moderate: Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, and Sexual assault

Minor: Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Cultural appropriation