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time_travel_tragedy's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-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? It's complicated
2.0
This book about breaking generational trauma cycles and there are some really powerful moments that really hit home as someone with a difficult family that bears some similarity to some of the things the characters deal with. I feel like if you have a difficult family and hope to break generational cycles, this might be a good book for you BUT see below.
There is a prominent cousin relationship going on though. And they do use the G-slur as a slur. So that is a thing. I understand that it's "realistic" and she's basing it on her own homophobia before she was reformed. And yes, the fact that the main character was being racist was considered not okay by the one she called the slur, and it's definitely not encouraged in the book, but I still feel like she could have gotten her point across without it. The author also knew it was considered a slur. So you can't even say she didn't know.
If you want books about generational trauma and breaking the cycle, I think you can find better books that don't include racial slurs.
There is a prominent cousin relationship going on though. And they do use the G-slur as a slur. So that is a thing. I understand that it's "realistic" and she's basing it on her own homophobia before she was reformed. And yes, the fact that the main character was being racist was considered not okay by the one she called the slur, and it's definitely not encouraged in the book, but I still feel like she could have gotten her point across without it. The author also knew it was considered a slur. So you can't even say she didn't know.
If you want books about generational trauma and breaking the cycle, I think you can find better books that don't include racial slurs.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse and Racial slurs
thereadingoutlaw's review
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Bullying, Racial slurs, Rape, and Sexual assault
melaniereadsbooks's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Never met an Anna-Marie McLemore book I didn't love! A little sad there were no queer characters in this one, but lots of their more recent books have queer characters galore!
This is a Romeo and Juliet retelling so of course it has some tragedy in it. I really loved this and everything AM did with this story. I am VERY familiar with R&J because I've been teaching it for the last 5 years. I love the takes on it in this and the differences with how things were resolved. Also love love love the characters so much!
This is a Romeo and Juliet retelling so of course it has some tragedy in it. I really loved this and everything AM did with this story. I am VERY familiar with R&J because I've been teaching it for the last 5 years. I love the takes on it in this and the differences with how things were resolved. Also love love love the characters so much!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Death, and Eating disorder
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
durrareadsstuff's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-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
4.0
Stories—the ones we speak, the ones we read, the ones we write down-make us human to each other. Fiction, however made-up, makes us real to each other. Stories take us past slurs and stereotypes, and into the deep ocean of understanding that every person, real or imagined, cannot be reduced to a word or a few words.
I've been staring into the abyss for hours now. This was just so beautifully written and the story itself was so tragic. This book reminded my why I loved reading so much, of how much fiction can teach you and make you understand things.
I went into this thinking it's gonna be some retelling of romeo and juliet with a hint of magic in it, nothing too heavy. And it is, the love story of lace and cluck and their families do resemble the Shakespeare classic, but also it deals heavily with racism, family problems and prejudice and understanding. I'll be honest though, I took some time to wrap my head around the plot, I feel like the words twist you around and around but all that is somewhat necessary to achieve the depth of the actual story and the beauty of it. Granted, I am not much of a fan of books with romance as their main plotline, so maybe that's why I got lost a little bit.
Also another thing worth noting : the chapters are so short!! And the sayings in french and spanish at every chapter are so cool. I think this is a much needed fiction—to understand how racism came to be, how some people grew up with it and can't help but see others in a different light, how they were taught to see others to "protect themselves". And how by breaking that barrier between them, just by talking and listening to each other, Lace and Cluck escaped the cages their families made for them.
I went into this thinking it's gonna be some retelling of romeo and juliet with a hint of magic in it, nothing too heavy. And it is, the love story of lace and cluck and their families do resemble the Shakespeare classic, but also it deals heavily with racism, family problems and prejudice and understanding. I'll be honest though, I took some time to wrap my head around the plot, I feel like the words twist you around and around but all that is somewhat necessary to achieve the depth of the actual story and the beauty of it. Granted, I am not much of a fan of books with romance as their main plotline, so maybe that's why I got lost a little bit.
Also another thing worth noting : the chapters are so short!! And the sayings in french and spanish at every chapter are so cool. I think this is a much needed fiction—to understand how racism came to be, how some people grew up with it and can't help but see others in a different light, how they were taught to see others to "protect themselves". And how by breaking that barrier between them, just by talking and listening to each other, Lace and Cluck escaped the cages their families made for them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Ableism, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief
Minor: Animal death and Sexual assault