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taaya's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
So, Lily is now a full time dog walker and designs dog fashion and we only learn that between the lines, because showing us the interesting bits (registering the business, doing the taxes, dealing with delivery chain stuff,...) would take away from showing us Lily as an immature drama queen. (And no, Dash, Lily is the textbook version of a drama queen!)
And Dash is now in Oxford where he hoped he'd be... What? Honestly, in what kind of bubble did he live to think that everyone there would be as pretentious and classist (because you ARE, Dash) as he. (Okay, classism on an elite university might even be a thing.)
And instead of actually, finally learning what their life is like in a day to day state, we again only meet them in the most stressful, most breakdown-inducing time of the year in a seemingly endless series of drama and big, unnecessary gestures, while they behaved like spoiled brats (well, they are), and live in a fantasy world where a dog walker earns 3k pounds Christmas bonus (yeah, I checked how expensive Lily's room is) from a single client.
(No idea about the US, but here a dog walker is usually a job for kids to supplement their pocket money. And even the few adult dog walkers only earn 15 euros an hour tops. Can't imagine a country less based on social security would pay better wages. Not to mention that there's always tax, insurance - both your own, if you earn money, and for the damage the dogs may cause -,...)
And no, suspension of disbelief is one thing, but making kids who read this dream of something without giving them an ounce of reality can cause real damage!
Then there's a toxic family, a professor who tells the parents the content of an email she got from an ADULT, which would get her fired in the real world for violation of data protection, and of course lots of vitamine B, because they are rich and that opens doors for them. (And don't tell me they're not rich if one door of the advent calendar Lily crafts for Dash already contains 50 pounds. That's more than normal earning people pay for a Christmas present, especially when they're teens!)
Then life changing decisions must be made within these four days we get to see, because it would be too realistic to actually have people think about it for a while...
Oh, and yes, the only canonically black person here (because in the books Boomer was never described as black) is a servant. A well educated high class servant, yes, but a servant nonetheless.
Also, the British don't seem very British, and sorry, have the authors ever been in UK? Oxford isn't exactly IN London, you know? And taking a cab? During Christmas time? I mean, might depend on the part of London, but my experience is that the fastest way to travel in London, at least in the inner city, is by foot. And taxis are the one thing you really don't take, because they're even slower than the tube (if the tube isn't on strike AGAIN).
Ugh!
This book has classist, ableist (only people with perfect orthography are trustworthy) and racist subtones (though Kudos for showing a muslim character fighting anti-islamic bullshit) , close to no plot and no chance to feel for the characters, because everything important is either too rushed or happens 'off screen'.
One star on top for the writing style that at least made me finish the book in under 36 hours. But that's all I can say for it.
And Dash is now in Oxford where he hoped he'd be... What? Honestly, in what kind of bubble did he live to think that everyone there would be as pretentious and classist (because you ARE, Dash) as he. (Okay, classism on an elite university might even be a thing.)
And instead of actually, finally learning what their life is like in a day to day state, we again only meet them in the most stressful, most breakdown-inducing time of the year in a seemingly endless series of drama and big, unnecessary gestures, while they behaved like spoiled brats (well, they are), and live in a fantasy world where a dog walker earns 3k pounds Christmas bonus (yeah, I checked how expensive Lily's room is) from a single client.
(No idea about the US, but here a dog walker is usually a job for kids to supplement their pocket money. And even the few adult dog walkers only earn 15 euros an hour tops. Can't imagine a country less based on social security would pay better wages. Not to mention that there's always tax, insurance - both your own, if you earn money, and for the damage the dogs may cause -,...)
And no, suspension of disbelief is one thing, but making kids who read this dream of something without giving them an ounce of reality can cause real damage!
Then there's a toxic family, a professor who tells the parents the content of an email she got from an ADULT, which would get her fired in the real world for violation of data protection, and of course lots of vitamine B, because they are rich and that opens doors for them. (And don't tell me they're not rich if one door of the advent calendar Lily crafts for Dash already contains 50 pounds. That's more than normal earning people pay for a Christmas present, especially when they're teens!)
Then life changing decisions must be made within these four days we get to see, because it would be too realistic to actually have people think about it for a while...
Oh, and yes, the only canonically black person here (because in the books Boomer was never described as black) is a servant. A well educated high class servant, yes, but a servant nonetheless.
Also, the British don't seem very British, and sorry, have the authors ever been in UK? Oxford isn't exactly IN London, you know? And taking a cab? During Christmas time? I mean, might depend on the part of London, but my experience is that the fastest way to travel in London, at least in the inner city, is by foot. And taxis are the one thing you really don't take, because they're even slower than the tube (if the tube isn't on strike AGAIN).
Ugh!
This book has classist, ableist (only people with perfect orthography are trustworthy) and racist subtones (though Kudos for showing a muslim character fighting anti-islamic bullshit) , close to no plot and no chance to feel for the characters, because everything important is either too rushed or happens 'off screen'.
One star on top for the writing style that at least made me finish the book in under 36 hours. But that's all I can say for it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Classism, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Racism, Islamophobia, and Ableism
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