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kayaj's reviews
515 reviews
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
5.0
From the title alone, you know Yellowface is going to take you on a thrill ride. Of course, the question becomes: when is Twitter referenced too much in a book*?
*it’s twitter. it will always be twitter. i ain’t having any of that x mumbo jumbo on here
We are thrown into the perspective of June Hayward, a midlist author whose rival is Athena Liu, beloved by the literary world. They’re loosely friends, but what happens when June is the only one to witness Athena’s untimely death? And what happens when she, as a white author, takes Athena’s manuscript, edits it, and publishes it as a new, rebranded, slightly racially ambiguous version of herself? The publishing version of the Titanic, that’s what. And that, my friends, is the mere premise of Yellowface.
This entire book toes the line between racial politics and a critique of the publishing industry. Anyone who has even a slight interest in the cogs and gears of the machine that is publishing should read this book. It’s not perfect, in fact, it is incredibly apparent in its bias. However, as we read from the first-person perspective of June Hayward, we see how authors fight for their voices to be heard. We see the impact of Goodreads reviews, the onslaught of Twitter hashtags, and the inner world of agents, deals, and royalties.
What does all of this mean? It means that sure: this book will be dated sooner rather than later. Twitter is already not technically called twitter* anymore. However, I believe that this book is an incredible snapshot into the depths of the publishing industry as it exists right now. This is not a modern classic as literary classics are often thought of. Instead, it is a direct shot at the complexities of publishing.
“And I wonder if that’s the final, obscure part of how publishing works: if the books that become big do so because at some point everyone decided, for no good reason at all, that this would be the title of the moment.”
*it took me a long time to admit that, and just barely.
On the other hand, this is an examination of racial politics. June Hayward changed her author name to Juniper Song and released a stolen manuscript from a Chinese author, on Chinese workers during a historical period. As the book progresses, we are continually subject to June’s increasingly desperate attempts to both hide her actions and to justify them. Kuang does an excellent job writing a character who feels well-realized, and not overtly racist. But don’t get me wrong: June Hayward’s racism comes across in other ways. She edits the book to make it less Chinese, and therefore, more accessible to a white audience. Yet, Yellowface uses June’s character to bring up great points about race, and how it can relate to the publishing industry.
One critique of Kuang is that she does not handle race with nuance. Yet, she’s not just deft in her portrayal of June’s racism in subtle ways. Athena’s character is also complex. Athena was not perfect, and that is clear from a perspective beyond June’s. Kuang also brings up the discourse of Chinese authors vs. Chinese-American authors, which extends to the idea of diaspora and diversity in writing.
You can’t tear your eyes away from this trainwreck, from this slowly sinking ship of mistakes. This might not be the most complex book, nor the most beautifully written book. However, this is a story that is brilliantly satirical, that is full of a surprising array of nuanced questions pertaining to multiple topics. It’s actually quite an impressive novel, both meta and unique, and for that it gets 5 stars from me!
A Curse for True Love by Stephanie Garber
After the finale* of the Caraval trilogy disappointed me, I had hesitantly high hopes for this final book in the Once Upon A Broken Heart series. The first two were full of magic and whimsy, tinged with darkness at the edges. A poisoned apple of a book series if you will. However, this one just lost a lot of the magic for me unfortunately.
*yes yes, i am well aware that the final book was named finale so it seems like i’m making a not-so-clever reference to it. and so what if i am? i never promised clever and original quips
We follow Evangeline, who has lost her memories after the ending of Ballad. She is married to Prince Apollo, who will stop at nothing to keep her safe from Jacks, whom she doesn’t even remember. She has it all: a prince, a castle, true(?) love. However, when she meets Jacks in the form of Archer, she slowly starts to realize that there’s something dreadfully wrong with her “happily ever after”.
A Curse For True Love actually disappointed me more than I thought it did. To start, we get at least twice the amount of chapters from Apollo’s perspective as we do Jack’s. And that tragedy summarizes the crux of the problems with this book: Jacks is not present enough*. As a reader, I do not care about Apollo. His coolest attribute is that he shares the name of a Greek god. His chapters either hint towards some political maneuvering that is never fully fleshed out or some complex villain arc that is…guess what? Never fully realized! Ding ding ding!
*i know it sounds like i’m simping but guys, for once in my life i am OBJECTIVELY not. well…actually i am but come on, it’s jacks!
Not only are we stuck reading from a character who we don’t care about*, but Evangeline’s lack of memories is so frustrating to experience. The first half of this book is incredibly slow, and it kind of feels like nothing of consequence is happening. The only truly captivating parts are when the Valors appear and seem to be vaguely plotting something. Like I said, the politics and mind games never feel truly fleshed out so I couldn’t find it in myself to really care. I was more or less just waiting for Jacks the entire time.
*i just realized i owe the two apollo lovers that exist in the world an apology. i’m happy the two of you get to read about a character you adore.
“He would carry her through more than just freezing waters. He would pull her through fire if he had to, haul her from the clutches of war, from falling cities and breaking worlds . . .”
Jacks is not present enough in this book. The overwhelming chemistry of the first two books just…melts away. Evangeline and Jacks hardly encounter each other and when they do, it’s obviously complicated because of Evangeline’s amnesia*. This not only made the majority of the book a waiting game, but it cheapened the ending. I think it would be better to read all of the books back-to-back, so the banter, side glances, and chemistry carry you through this book.
*sorry for all these side tangents but have i ever stated how much i HATE amnesia as a plot device??? the only time it’s ever worked is for dory in finding nemo and even dory doesn’t get a full pass.
The issue with a fantasy romance series is that it often relies heavily on the romance being fleshed out. When that’s not working, the flaws in the fantastical elements really come to light. This book never felt like pure magic in its treatment of setting and characters, not the way the others did. However, I did really enjoy the last 100 pages. We finally got yearning! Love! High stakes! Twists and more twists! The last 100 pages of this book are what I wanted the entire 400 pages of this book to be.
I will add that I own the Owlcrate edition of this book, which means I got to read a very interesting bonus epilogue. There are some characters that I would like to read more about for sure. I think that if Stephanie Garber does end up writing those stories, I can see why this book feels the way it does because it truly feels like a prequel for another series and not the finale to Evangeline and Jack’s.
So that’s it! Overall, I am heartbroken. I still enjoyed the writing, and the characters, not to mention that the first two books definitely softened me for this one. It’s just a shame that this did not feel like a consequential finale for the most part.
Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
4.5
i think i like elsie better than olive and adam better than jack but i really enjoyed the plot of this one more than the love hypothesis. rtc!
One for My Enemy by Olivie Blake
Did not finish book. Stopped at 0%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 0%.
i didn’t love the romance, but honestly i just didn’t have a desire to pick this up. i wasn’t even completely bored or anything. just wasn’t invested.
When You Wish Upon a Lantern by Gloria Chao
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
When You Wish Upon A Lantern feels a little bit like a Disney movie and a little bit like a warm hug. We follow Liya, whose family owns a lantern shop, and Kai, whose family owns a baking shop. They were childhood friends but then a huge misunderstanding came between them. When Liya’s shop is at risk of closing for good, she recruits Kai to help her fulfill the wishes that are written on the lanterns.
This book has a surprising amount of tropes! There’s miscommunication of course, but also found family. If you love watching a community rally together, then check this out! Personally, I did really enjoy Liya and Kai’s story. However, I felt like it leaned a little younger than I was expecting. That’s perfectly fine, because now I have a go-to book to recommend to my little sister and her friends!
Like I said, this story does lean a little younger. But it feels like a Disney short come to life. Okay, so maybe I’m mostly just thinking of Tangled but still! Liya and Kai are absolutely adorable together, and watching them serve* their community by fulfilling the wishes of the store’s customers was so fun.
*sure, they had some ulterior motives. but personally, i think they went above and beyond. to infinity and beyond!
Every single scene with the lanterns was so magical. It’s truly the perfect foil for any and all romantic moments. But beyond the romance, I loved that we got to see a variety of relationships. Liya and Kai have different relationships with their parents. Every character has a different dynamic from other characters. And honestly, I just thought Chao did a really great job at creating a world so alive that it felt like you could meet any of these characters any day.