Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - Anna K: A Love Story

Very well-written and engaging. I love the original story of Anna Karenina and I wasn't sure what to expect, but the Jenny Lee did such a great job making it modern. It almost reminded me of the OG Gossip Girl series, especially taking place with Manhattan's elite. I loved how diverse the cast of characters was, too. There was a lot going on and a few different intertwining storylines to follow, but it was surprisingly easy to do so. I also really love her writing style and the use of an omniscient narrator. It's been a while since I've read something that I liked this much.

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lilybear3's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny lighthearted relaxing tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

This book is a modern-day YA retelling of Anna Karenina. I haven't read the original, but I feel like Jenny Lee included important and pivotal moments in her version and adapted them. Leo Tolstoy's novel is 800+ pages and Anna K is 400ish pages. I listened to the audiobook, which is read by Glee's Jenna Ushkowitz. I couldn't have picked a better narrator, I think she was great and consistent throughout the novel. She gave some characters different voices, but it didn't sound strained or like she was trying too hard.

The story is truly Crazy Rich Asians meets Gossip Girl in the best way. While this is a longer book than I normally read, I was interested the whole time and was captivated by what would happen next. It's the kind of fluffy romance that I love, full of over-the-top romance. There's Drama with a capital D! I love that we follow a large cast of characters with their own love stories and how they intertwine with one another. There are many pop culture references and has all the things young adults are dealing with (even if most aren't super rich). There are lots of CW/TWs so be sure to look at those! The bulk of them are related to alcohol, drugs, and sex.

I have a print copy and my version has discussion questions in the back! How fun! One of the first questions in the back of the print version is about how race plays a part in the book. I must have missed it, because I only knew Anna K's family was Korean. It was mentioned about halfway through that Dustin is Black and adopted. I presume the rest of the characters are white but I'm not sure. It think there are conversations that could be had speculating. But I think the book could've explored this question further and overtly.

I definitely recommend this book if you want a rich people drama-filled story. But there's also wholesome romance! It's over-the-top at times, but that's what I love.

Thoughts on certain parts of the book, a.k.a. many spoilers:

Throughout the book, I felt misogyny was upheld, even though the three main teens grew as characters. Like the characters see that women and teenage girls are held to a higher and double standard in their rich people world, but there isn't action taken to make it better. It ends up being upheld by the rest of their society (Bea for example). Anna and Steven's dad (and other parents) were the worst. Towards the end I was very upset because everyone blamed Anna for what happened instead of seeing her as the victim. Then, even though he apologizes, her dad still makes Anna live abroad for a "fresh start" (plot for book 2). Eleanor is written like she is autistic but it's never explicitly stated. She is made fun of for her OCD in having things clean and having things go a certain way. Vronsky also mentions that she doesn't get sarcasm. I didn't love that she was the "villain" and hated by most. Especially that she was the one who filmed/released the sex tape. But maybe the Eleanor character in Anna Karenina was also the "villain." The ending was a little ridiculous for me when they were trying to save the dog on the tracks AGAIN. It was just Anna INSISTING that they could save the dog and Vronsky DIES. That whole scuffle was a mess. But in Anna Karenina, Anna dies, so I was waiting for that ending.

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kimveach's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Sex, drugs, and other misbehavior from the young, rich, and vapid. It was a little dull at first since I knew the story of Anna Karenina, but it ended up being better than I expected as I grew to know the characters. I enjoyed the difference in the ending from the classic.

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mari_library's review against another edition

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This is a soft-DNF but I am as bored as I was when I was reading Anna Karenina (and honestly I think I had more fun reading Levin talk about farming for 50+ pages). I think there was a lot of lost potential here. None of the character's felt flushed out. A lot of them were just a list of character traits with no connection. I wasn't connected nor cared about any of them, and to be honest, I forgot a lot of characters/things that happened to them because I wasn't invested. A liked a few of the storylines but I think that - given the source material - there was so much more that could've been given. I think this reimagining of Tolstoy would've benefited if the characters actually used modern devices (you're telling me none of these characters had a YouTube channel or a TikTok?? Sounds fake but okay). Like if Anna and Vronsky texted, we would actually have some high stakes here. It doesn't help that Anna lacks a personality (which sucks given that she was my favorite in the original story). Also because they are in high school, it is hard to take anything seriously, you know?

Plus the amount of unchecked sexism and racism is getting to me.

oh and let's not get into how Vronsky was fucking horrible talking about the homeless guy and then try to turn face and give him money. And when Anna was like "I saw you give him money", the bastard was like "I wanted you to see it because I want you to see that I do care". Like boy, eat dirt.

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trishmarie17's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

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

3.0

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amandalorianxo's review against another edition

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emotional slow-paced

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

2.5

I read Anna Karenina when I was in college. That was a heavy book, both metaphorically and physically. So I had always been hesitant when I see books catered towards the modern audience with inspo or bare bones plot devices from the classics. Granted, this was a lot, not as heavy as the Russian novel but imagine a lot of rich kids doing… rich kid things. Sex, drugs let’s rock n roll type of vibe. The surprise twist at the end was definitely a surprise since it’s not quite how the inspo ended. Is this a little too much? At times it can be a little eye roll inducing and unnecessary but I did like the diversity that was in this. It’s not a deeply profound book but if you are looking to unplug your brain, this might fit. Note there are some weird quotes from certain characters that are a little cringey.

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ludivinev's review against another edition

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lighthearted fast-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

1.75

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