A review by fanboyriot
Ugliest by Kelly Vincent

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring 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? No

5.0

♡ Booktok
♡ Political Vibes
♡ Wholesome Friendships

I loved this book.  The character development is so satisfyingly shown in every character, the shy characters like Nic who came out of their shell more and more by the end of the book.  I think the characters were all unique in personality and in general, they had flaws and depth to their personality.  Even the side characters seemed to have an actual and believable life.

This book had great queer rep and it was really nice to see the detail the author went into with it all.  The main character Nic had a mindset of not assuming anything about anybody because they learned from the past and I think that worked out well.

While this book does get a bit political its done in a tasteful way.  It gets a bit depressingly accurate how it feels living in the the United States currently.  It showed the good and bad.  Not everyone was filled with hate but it taking place in a small town in a red state a lot of people were pretty hateful and it really didn’t matter what they looked like.  But in the end, people genuinely cared and want change.  It felt like what's going on currently of people finally learning the word “freedom” works for everyone and not just in favor of the hateful, ignorant lawmakers and their supporters.

This book overall though was rather hopeful, it was nice to read something so clear on topics that are sometimes brushed under the rug.  While I tend to stay out of politics for my own mental health, it's like a balancing act of staying informed and not falling into hopeless despair and I really liked how the author went about this with each character.  It was nice to see the realistic characteristics of it all, especially showing for Mack and how his mood declined for a while the more involved he got without taking a breather.  It also showed in Nic as well, as they got braver with being able to stand up for themself and their friends. 

I think this book is great for any age, people are always growing—but especially the younger audience who might want a less “in your face” way of learning the very real effects of our country and world when it comes to basic human rights for BIPOC communities or LGBTQIA+ communities all the while staying within the safety of a fictional book; if that makes sense.

A big thank you to the author for letting me be one of the beta reader for this.

Spice Level: n/a
POV: First Person
Release Date: 13, August 2024
Rep: Non-Binary (Main Character), Asexual Transmasc (Side Character), BIPOC (Side Characters) LGBTQIA+ (Main and Side Characters)
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