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journey2's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
Sometimes I need to take my own advice. If you are not loving a book...it's okay to quit it. And you probably should.
But I wanted to see how it ended.
~☆~ minor spoilers~☆~
Stay Gold was not a good read for me. I found this book frustrating. The characters annoyed me and everyone seemed extremely superficial.
Pony is relentless about the "friend zone" thing with Georgia. She continues to say no to his advances and he continues to pursue. Yes, she likes him, but she has clearly said no and he will not give up and keeps asking for more; including love bombing her with a grand gesture, until he can eventually win her over.
Our main love interest, Georgia, is so obsessed with her image and social standing right til nearly the end and her change of heart is supposed to be endearing, but by the time we got there I was just so tired of how fake she was.
I know that in high school everybody's figuring out who they are and who they want to be, but absolutely every character was so fake and two dimensional. In the end, superficial apologies and excuses like "it's just locker room talk" etc seem to 'fix' every off-colour comment or remark. Pony's dad was absolutely horrible to him throughout the entire book and his mom was kind of just complacent and didn't fight for him. A couple sentences at the very end of the book are supposed to redeem him but they just felt forced. Even though lots of things ended up being happy or at least happier, I found this book extremely problematic, frustrating and annoying and I do not recommend it.
I'm curious as to what the purpose of the storyline about Pony's job served. It didn't really go anywhere except to allow Pony to be nosy and intrusive into somebody else's business and then he got to have a warm fuzzy feeling afterwards. On that note, Pony continued to stick his nose into business that is not his own and it was very annoying. There was a time when Pony and Georgia stuck their noses into something so personal that I actually took time away from the book because I was exasperated. He was rewarded for it eventually, but it was annoying to read.
This book was 100% not for me and was just completely filled with red flags.
I could go on, but I won't!
Also it's list of trigger warnings is a mile long
But I wanted to see how it ended.
~☆~ minor spoilers~☆~
Stay Gold was not a good read for me. I found this book frustrating. The characters annoyed me and everyone seemed extremely superficial.
Pony is relentless about the "friend zone" thing with Georgia. She continues to say no to his advances and he continues to pursue. Yes, she likes him, but she has clearly said no and he will not give up and keeps asking for more; including love bombing her with a grand gesture, until he can eventually win her over.
Our main love interest, Georgia, is so obsessed with her image and social standing right til nearly the end and her change of heart is supposed to be endearing, but by the time we got there I was just so tired of how fake she was.
I know that in high school everybody's figuring out who they are and who they want to be, but absolutely every character was so fake and two dimensional. In the end, superficial apologies and excuses like "it's just locker room talk" etc seem to 'fix' every off-colour comment or remark. Pony's dad was absolutely horrible to him throughout the entire book and his mom was kind of just complacent and didn't fight for him. A couple sentences at the very end of the book are supposed to redeem him but they just felt forced. Even though lots of things ended up being happy or at least happier, I found this book extremely problematic, frustrating and annoying and I do not recommend it.
I'm curious as to what the purpose of the storyline about Pony's job served. It didn't really go anywhere except to allow Pony to be nosy and intrusive into somebody else's business and then he got to have a warm fuzzy feeling afterwards. On that note, Pony continued to stick his nose into business that is not his own and it was very annoying. There was a time when Pony and Georgia stuck their noses into something so personal that I actually took time away from the book because I was exasperated. He was rewarded for it eventually, but it was annoying to read.
This book was 100% not for me and was just completely filled with red flags.
I could go on, but I won't!
Also it's list of trigger warnings is a mile long
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Outing, Rape, Sexual violence, Deadnaming, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Drug use
beastbark's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Hate crime, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Sexual content
that_bookworm_guy's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This is a hard book to review because right up until the ends, I really didn't like the characters. I get the point being made, I do. Some of the trans information and statistics were well done and a good addition.
First of all, I defo want to put here that I am a trans man. So this is my view as just 1 trans person.
First of all, the romance. I'm defo not great at reading romance, but I definitely didn't find it cute. This could just be me, I'm really aware that romance just isn't my thing. But it felt so focused. I hated, hated how Pony chased Georgia after she said she didn't want to date him. He was counting down the days it had been since they kissed and was purposely making situations hoping for a kiss. And then after a big love show, she turned him down because he is trans and she was worried about her image. I know this is meant to be a point of growth for the characters as she learns that it doesn't matter but yeah, I didn't like this.
Max, a trans friend, keeps putting pressure on Pony to be out and proud as a trans man when he keeps repeating that he wants to live stealth after what happened before. Then threatens that if he isn't out he will end the friendship. Emotional blackmail. Nope. As a trans person, I don't know a single trans person who would do this to another trans person. He does apologise later, but only after Pony comes out and gets attacked. Max is an incredibly shitty person and apologising is the very least, but yeah, I defo wouldn't trust or forgive someone for doing that. This is such a harmful situation, Pony should have 100% cut Max out of his life at the first sign of emotional manipulation. I really hope trans youths know that they don't ever have to come out like this. I live stealth in my life at work and I would 100% cut out a friend who expected me to share things online such as Facebook where it could risk outing me. Because respect is the least I ask for. Let alone from another trans person.
The book also got very dark very suddenly at the end. I understand it happens in life. That trans people get assaulted, and that trans people are at a higher risk of suicide. But I just don't think this was handled well at all. It was almost sudden with no warning.
If you're expecting a cute romance with some hard hitting bits, then it's worth looking into the TWs. Because this gets incredibly dark.
There is also theme throughout where Georgia is trying to find out Pony's deadname. It's revealed in the end, and although Georgia says that she didn't really need to know what it was and it doesn't matter, it would have been a much nicer thing if the name was never revealed to the reader. If it truly doesn't matter, then don't mention it. I understand the point that was trying to be made, but it would have made a bigger point to not make a huge point of it. The first 2 letters are revealed part way through the book and I feel like it almost leads the reader to want to figure out his deadname.
I've rated this 2.5/3* simply because there were some good points in this book and I was semi enjoying the train wreck of the romance thinking that it was just me not enjoying romance, but there are definitely some huge red flags with the romance.
First of all, I defo want to put here that I am a trans man. So this is my view as just 1 trans person.
First of all, the romance. I'm defo not great at reading romance, but I definitely didn't find it cute. This could just be me, I'm really aware that romance just isn't my thing. But it felt so focused. I hated, hated how Pony chased Georgia after she said she didn't want to date him. He was counting down the days it had been since they kissed and was purposely making situations hoping for a kiss. And then after a big love show, she turned him down because he is trans and she was worried about her image. I know this is meant to be a point of growth for the characters as she learns that it doesn't matter but yeah, I didn't like this.
Max, a trans friend, keeps putting pressure on Pony to be out and proud as a trans man when he keeps repeating that he wants to live stealth after what happened before. Then threatens that if he isn't out he will end the friendship. Emotional blackmail. Nope. As a trans person, I don't know a single trans person who would do this to another trans person. He does apologise later, but only after Pony comes out and gets attacked. Max is an incredibly shitty person and apologising is the very least, but yeah, I defo wouldn't trust or forgive someone for doing that. This is such a harmful situation, Pony should have 100% cut Max out of his life at the first sign of emotional manipulation. I really hope trans youths know that they don't ever have to come out like this. I live stealth in my life at work and I would 100% cut out a friend who expected me to share things online such as Facebook where it could risk outing me. Because respect is the least I ask for. Let alone from another trans person.
The book also got very dark very suddenly at the end. I understand it happens in life. That trans people get assaulted, and that trans people are at a higher risk of suicide. But I just don't think this was handled well at all. It was almost sudden with no warning.
If you're expecting a cute romance with some hard hitting bits, then it's worth looking into the TWs. Because this gets incredibly dark.
There is also theme throughout where Georgia is trying to find out Pony's deadname. It's revealed in the end, and although Georgia says that she didn't really need to know what it was and it doesn't matter, it would have been a much nicer thing if the name was never revealed to the reader. If it truly doesn't matter, then don't mention it. I understand the point that was trying to be made, but it would have made a bigger point to not make a huge point of it. The first 2 letters are revealed part way through the book and I feel like it almost leads the reader to want to figure out his deadname.
I've rated this 2.5/3* simply because there were some good points in this book and I was semi enjoying the train wreck of the romance thinking that it was just me not enjoying romance, but there are definitely some huge red flags with the romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Deadnaming, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Lesbophobia, Suicide, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, Outing, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
cryscries's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
2.75
I’m being generous about the rating because genuinely the first half of the book was cute - cringe but cute. The second half was not as great and overall there was just a lot of things about this book that I wish was developed a bit better.
Pros: there is a trigger warning in one of the pages before the story begins in the paperback version.
Cons:
1. It was hard to root for the main two characters - especially the main love interest. Georgia is supposed to represent probably a typical cis person reaction but i found it so hard to feel bad for her and her issues. I find her to be rather self centered (even tho she is characterized to kinda be insecure) - throughout the story even though she “gets better” as a person it still doesn’t make up for how she’s acted in the rest of the book. Very passive with standing up for her friends and pony, thoughts of outing him out of jealousy, definitely needs new friends who should be supportive.
2. Everything kinda just works out in the end for pony but it feels a little lack luster in the end of how he gets to where he is - his change feels more said than done.
3. Major problems with the side character max- tho I feel there was a lot of stereotypes in this book, o felt Max’s character was rather toxic. FIRST THINGS FIRST, you do not need to come out if you are not ready and you do not need to come out to show that you are supportive of the community. Do things at your own time. I had problems with max being rather pushy towards pony in wanting him to come out when it is definitely not safe to, have him drop the friendship because pony doesn’t want to be out, and then says he’s proud of pony for coming out at the cost of being beaten up because “it happens everyday”
There were some cute moments in this book but there was too much problems to overlook that.
Pros: there is a trigger warning in one of the pages before the story begins in the paperback version.
Cons:
1. It was hard to root for the main two characters - especially the main love interest. Georgia is supposed to represent probably a typical cis person reaction but i found it so hard to feel bad for her and her issues. I find her to be rather self centered (even tho she is characterized to kinda be insecure) - throughout the story even though she “gets better” as a person it still doesn’t make up for how she’s acted in the rest of the book. Very passive with standing up for her friends and pony, thoughts of outing him out of jealousy, definitely needs new friends who should be supportive.
2. Everything kinda just works out in the end for pony but it feels a little lack luster in the end of how he gets to where he is - his change feels more said than done.
3. Major problems with the side character max- tho I feel there was a lot of stereotypes in this book, o felt Max’s character was rather toxic. FIRST THINGS FIRST, you do not need to come out if you are not ready and you do not need to come out to show that you are supportive of the community. Do things at your own time. I had problems with max being rather pushy towards pony in wanting him to come out when it is definitely not safe to, have him drop the friendship because pony doesn’t want to be out, and then says he’s proud of pony for coming out at the cost of being beaten up because “it happens everyday”
There were some cute moments in this book but there was too much problems to overlook that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Self harm, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Bullying, Dysphoria, Hate crime, Homophobia, Outing, Deadnaming, and Suicidal thoughts
melbrooker's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Bullying, and Deadnaming
libras's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Transphobia, and Lesbophobia
mayenk's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I couldn't believe in the relationship in the end. I couldn't believe in the ending. The book also felt very dated especially with the pop culture sprinkled. Also the end felt to easily resolved and I didn't believe that the characters would do certain things, also sometimes it felt like the characters were acting stupid for no reason.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Sexual assault
lixard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
- advertised as a romantic ya story between trans boy and a cis girl of different parts of the hs hierarchy......... what we got was much darker and more traumatic than promised
- i am not trans so i redirect you to check out some ownvoices reviewers but after reading/watching other such reviews,, i am better able to catch the unaddressed misogyny, (internalized and external) transphobia, and how the characters never seemed to grow out of that mindset or properly apologize for their actions and words
- it felt like that era of fanfiction that wrote super traumatic whump for the angst that you would read and cry to, which is valid in its own way, but definitely not forewarned, which seems problematic, esp. when targeted towards young (trans) audiences
- extra 0.5 stars because their flirty banter was nerdy and fun and made me chuckle and the writing (audiobook) was able to wring some tears from my eyes; the rest of the banter was a little far on what "teen-speak" is, though based on my old croon's 4 year old memory of high school
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Hate crime, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Sexual assault, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Alcohol
eeriewater's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
I entered into reading this book prepared for it to be a decent read but not anything special. Fair to say it exceeded my expectations. The dual POV made me connect with, and understand the characters reasonings, even when I disagreed with their decisions.
In my opinion stay gold had the perfect balance of angst, love and wholesomeness.
The only thing I kind of disliked in this book is more about my personal preference and less about it actually being a bad thing. I did feel like this book, which is about a trans man, was mainly written for cishet people with little to none experience with LGBTQ+ people. At times the description of gender dysphoria, surgeries and other trans issues felt a bit too educational for my taste, but for someone who aren't educated on these topics before reading the book, this can be a positive thing.
LGBTQ+ rep: FtM main character, FtM side character (minor), other minor characters of varying sexualities and gender identities
I'm going to miss Pony a lot now that the book is over, and I truly wish there'd be a sequel where we could see him getting the money necessary for his top surgery and actually going through with it. I'd also love to see how Georgia slowly but surely becomes more comfortable being herself
In my opinion stay gold had the perfect balance of angst, love and wholesomeness.
The only thing I kind of disliked in this book is more about my personal preference and less about it actually being a bad thing. I did feel like this book, which is about a trans man, was mainly written for cishet people with little to none experience with LGBTQ+ people. At times the description of gender dysphoria, surgeries and other trans issues felt a bit too educational for my taste, but for someone who aren't educated on these topics before reading the book, this can be a positive thing.
LGBTQ+ rep: FtM main character, FtM side character (minor), other minor characters of varying sexualities and gender identities
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Hate crime
Moderate: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria
Minor: Child abuse, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, and Deadnaming
indianagranger's review against another edition
I was very annoyed with Pony’s toxic masculinity and internalized homophobia and misogyny. I hadn’t been enjoying his chapters for a while. I was also getting anxious about all the hinting about what happened to Georgia without anyone saying what it was. the thing that drew the line in the sand was how Georgia responded to Pony coming out. It felt out of character and like it was just there to cause problems between them and make them both bad people so they are on even ground. . Basically this book was not what I hoped it would be based on how it was presented and I was worried about getting triggered constantly.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual assault