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patchworkninja's review against another edition
Moderate: Abortion
dragon_s_hoard's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Car accident, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Racism, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Abortion, Colonisation, and Deportation
basementofbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Car accident and Abortion
Minor: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Deportation
katjacatbeans's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
*Fanfic is fantastic, it just was not what I was expecting here!
The magical realism aspect was both less prominent and less explored than I both anticipated and hoped. It feels like a lot was left on the table in that regard. The general vibe of the book is very faithful to the original text, and Gatsby remains somewhat enigmatic.
Graphic: Death, Car accident, Abortion, and Alcohol
goodthingsread's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
2.5
Point (1) felt like it could have really been something. Unfortunately, Jordan being adopted and trying so hard to blend in actually made her ethnicity fade into the background. It's accurate and understandable characterization and I don't really fault it in that respect. But it was a letdown, especially when Jordan meets up with a group of Vietnamese (and other Asian) performers that assist in her tapping into her innate magic and her history. That comes so late in the book, however, that it feels very tacked on and doesn't really get dug into. Jordan gets so drunk halfway through a hangout with those characters that everything gets fuzzy and forgotten but while drunk she learns things and reveals things about herself, but because it's all from her perspective, we don't get the full impact. I would have much rather had Jordan learning more about her background and herself earlier in the story and running as an undercurrent throughout, but I don't know if the author didn't want to do that for her own reasons or because it wouldn't have worked while sticking to the original <i>Gatsby</i> story.
Point (2) I was <i>extremely</i> frustrated by because the magic system and world building around it was so infuriatingly vague. It's very loose and sprinkled here and there, seemingly never a part of the main narrative until the very end, so it's frustrating to not understand and feel like I'm missing something. For example, when Jordan is invited up to see Gatsby, she says she feels cloaked in something that makes others not notice her. Then, when she arrives in Gatsby's office, she feels like it's ripped away under his gaze <b>or</b> that his gaze is just that sharp. I genuinely have no idea which is or even could be true, and it doesn't add an air of mystery (like perhaps intended) but makes me feel like I am missing something that should be obvious, if I knew more about the setting's magic. I am definitely missing the impact of some uses of magic simply from lack of knowledge. The scene where Jordan watches land magic from the train to New York means practically nothing, just thrown in there like an afterthought, and I can tell that it was intended to mean more. Additionally, the casualness with which Jordan talks about ghosts is also a part of this. Is Jordan the only one who can see ghosts? For the longest time, I thought ghosts were simply confined to the Baker house/family until the very last chapter. I also can't tell who is a ghost until she makes it obvious, three paragraphs later. Magic is treated both as superfluous, glitter sprinkled about to make things a little shinier and unique, but it's also a central part to the end of the novel, informing the choices of so many characters. (And is a huge part of the final scene between Jordan and Nick, which just blindsided me so hard that I spent a very long time staring into space trying to process.)
There's also this weird note I got from some moments. At a certain point, Jordan speaks about how she likes to keep herself untethered and starts to talk about how "that summer" felt different. I think this is supposed to foreshadow the impending fall of the Roaring 20s and the Great Depression, but it comes off sounding like a teen waxing poetic about summer camp. "The things we learned <i>that summer</i> would stay with us for the rest of our lives..."
All that being said, I really, really do like the author's writing style generally. It's poetic and smooth and beautiful. I just didn't like its application in <i>this</i> story. I also liked the touches of queerness, which I felt did appropriately influence Jordan's character and choices.
I want to give her other books a chance and I hope she continues to publish more over the years. This just doesn't work for me.
Moderate: Drug use, Infidelity, Racism, Kidnapping, Abortion, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Xenophobia, Stalking, and Death of parent
aplpaca's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Abortion, Alcohol, and Classism
just_one_more_paige's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Racism, Car accident, and Alcohol
Moderate: Abortion
Minor: Gun violence and War
sparklefarm's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Car accident
Moderate: Abortion and Alcohol
Minor: Racism
klbreyfogle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, Vomit, and Abortion
Minor: Murder
zombiezami's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Infidelity, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Colonisation
Moderate: Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Abortion, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Child death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Slavery, Transphobia, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, War, and Deportation