Reviews

The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo

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elliotvanz's review against another edition

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reflective 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? No

4.0

timinbc's review against another edition

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3.0

I have liked Vo's novellas a lot; this, not so much.

Retelling a story is fine, if it's a story the reader liked in the original. Gatsby is not one of those for me. Inserting a new character and PoV is fine, and smoothly done.

Unfortunately, the cast given doesn't really contain anyone likable. We're just waiting for it all to spiral out of control, and that's a sub-genre I've never cared for.

SO let's add some magic. I'll admit it's very slickly slid into the reader's brain, and more than once I said to myself, "WAIT a minute," and went back three pages. And yes, that person IS that thing! Alas, I have never liked paper-magic stories; again, that's not the author's fault. But I was also left with the idea that we ended up with bits and scraps of magic from all sorts of very different lines of magic. For me, they didn't mix well.

And of course, "Dammit, when are you going to tell us who Walter Finley is?"
And what's with the pro golfer who drinks like a fish and parties hearty? I guess there were some in those days.

This author still has several credits in my rating bank, and I'll give a first-novel point, too. I'll look for the next one.

mayhem9683's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

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

4.5

tdavidovsky's review against another edition

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4.0

With flowery and lyrical prose, Nghi Vo revives the extravagant and cynical world of The Great Gatsby. It's beautiful and immersive, but it's impossible to ignore the poisonous undercurrent: the poverty that goes ignored, the deadly secrets, the doomed romance, and—in this version of the story—the demonic magic.

In the original story, F Scott Fitzgerald painted a vivid picture of the Jazz Age, where the decadence felt magical, even if Faustian bargains were sometimes necessary to experience the extravagance. In Vo's version, it actually is magical, and when characters strike Faustian bargains, it's literal demons who take their souls.

Told from the perspective of Jordan Baker (who is Asian and explicitly queer in this retelling), Vo invites readers to view this story from a fresh lens. Expanding on the issues of classism that Fitzgerald explored, while also adding modern considerations regarding racism and sexism, the book offers yet another reminder of how hollow and unobtainable the American Dream truly is.

ashley_heuser's review against another edition

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4.0

I really liked the premise of this book: magical realism meets Great Gatsby by also including historical events and legislation and analyzing how characters would think and feel about it. Vo successfully executes on the ideas that she lays out and gives readers a wonderful experience. This book, however, is not for me. Although I understand that The Great Gatsby is not meant to have likable characters so it makes sense that the characters in this novel would not be likable either, I struggle to get into books if I can't like the POV. I can definitely sympathize with Jordan, but I could not necessarily like her (but I also think that that was intentional). However, Vo's writing style is amazing. I prefer her Singing Hills Cycle series more, but this is still an impressive read.