Tag: contemporary

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Yellowface Review

by amyleighreads4 Comments on Yellowface Review

Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena’s a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn’t even get a paperback release. Nobody wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks. So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers to the British and French war efforts during World War I. So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song–complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.

Because this book was written from June’s point of view it kind of gave me You vibes. Like she very much is Joe Goldberg but in the literary world. The ways in which this woman thread the various justifications around and around in her mind until she actually thought what she did was ok was intense to read. I was constantly on the edge of my seat wondering when and how she was going to be exposed and I was so thoroughly invested that I had to put the book down for a few days.

I liked the flashbacks to early on in June and Athena’s friendship and how their tenuous bond was established. Why Athena still chose to keep June around and why that prompted June in taking the manuscript in the first place. I feel like she thought she deserved and earned it after being used by Athena. The way that this one lie just spirals and how June feels so vindicated with all this success and after her initial failure.

Even though this was a pretty short-ish book there were some pretty heavy topics and themes woven throughout this book that without the help of the audiobook would of been a slog to get through. Worth it though I feel because the way the plot wraps up was shocking and unfortunately highly realistic and just makes you question a lot of the publishing industry as a whole.

⭐️4/5 stars This book was wild!

Reviews

Carrie Soto is Back Review

by amyleighreads2 Comments on Carrie Soto is Back Review

By the time Carrie retires from tennis, she is the best player the world has ever seen. She has shattered every record and claimed twenty Slam titles. And if you ask her, she is entitled to every one. She sacrificed nearly everything to become the best, with her father as her coach. But six years after her retirement, Carrie finds herself sitting in the stands of the 1994 US Open, watching her record be taken from her by a brutal, stunning, British player named Nicki Chan. At thirty-seven years old, Carrie makes the monumental decision to come out of retirement and be coached by her father for one last year in an attempt to reclaim her record. Even if the sports media says that they never liked the ‘Battle-Axe’ anyway. Even if her body doesn’t move as fast as it did. And even if it means swallowing her pride to train with a man she once almost opened her heart to: Bowe Huntley. Like her, he has something to prove before he gives up the game forever.

Carrie was so fascinating and entertaining to read from. I loved seeing her throughout the course of her career and her life and how at each of these stages she evolves and grows. She is unapologetic about her success and feels as though she deserves it because she put in the work and isn’t afraid to say that out loud.

Bowe I wasn’t as attached to at the start because he comes in a bit later in the story. I did warm up to him though and I appreciated how he challenged Carrie and he wasn’t afraid to tell her the truth at any turn. He really stepped up when she needed him the most and communicated effectively when he needed it to be reciprocated which was lovely. He was also going through his own emotional and physical journey before his inevitable retirement and I loved the way he ended his career.

Taylor Jenkins Reid so far is the only author that creates historical fiction work that I actually enjoy! This book was absolutely amazing and I loved experiencing Carrie’s comeback. The sheer will and determination she shows even though everyone is doubting her at every turn, having those negative thoughts bouncing around in her head and still prevailing was inspiring. I feel like you have to either like or have an appreciation for tennis to fully become invested in this story and luckily for me it just worked beautifully!

⭐️5/5 stars I loved this, Carrie is a breath of fresh air!

Reviews

I Kissed Shara Wheeler Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on I Kissed Shara Wheeler Review

Chloe Green is so close to winning. After her moms moved her from SoCal to Alabama for high school, she’s spent the past four years dodging gossipy classmates and a puritanical administration at Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that’s kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal’s perfect progeny. But a month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and vanishes.

Chloe as a character is definitely interesting and she felt very authentic. Sometimes when I’m reading contemporary books the characters either read too young or old but I feel like Casey McQuiston got all of these characters pretty spot on. I liked the fact that Chloe rebels against the rigid rules and regulations at her school. At first I was confused as to why Chloe was so adamant in figuring out what happened to Shara and why she just had to follow her clues. I felt like there was no motivating factors for her to continue chasing after Shara when it was obvious she was just messing with them and sending them on this wild goose chase.

I didn’t like Shara’s character at all honestly. From what we find out about her throughout the course of the book she has always capitalized off her position as the principal’s daughter and uses and manipulates everyone around her for her own gain. Her quest she sets out for Chloe, Smith and Rory again really showcase how much of a bad person she is and I didn’t really like how she is supposed to be redeemed at the end. We don’t get to see her have conversations with Smith and Rory about how she used them and vice versa, we’re just supposed to accept that they are all good and dying each other’s hair. She just wasn’t really held accountable for anything and that annoyed me.

Overall I just didn’t understand what the purpose of the book was. It was centered around Shara however we don’t even meet her until almost three quarters of the way through. We see everything through Chloe’s perspective and she doesn’t have the nicest things to say about her and then I’m expected to believe that it was actually love she was feeling. Shara very nearly sabotaged Chloe’s whole academic career because she actually liked her too much? Just doesn’t make sense to me.

I understand that these are teenagers and maybe the way they feel isn’t supposed to make sense and this book was just supposed to be about accepting who you are and coming to terms with your feelings and growing from that, but I came out of it not feeling miffed. The other characters were entertaining and distinctive for the most part. The Rory and Smith subplot was adorable and I really enjoyed seeing them come together!

⭐️2/5 stars I can understand the appeal, wasn’t for me though…

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Clap When You Land Review

by amyleighreads3 Comments on Clap When You Land Review

43892137._SY475_This was great!

Clap When You Land is about two sisters who didn’t know each other existed. Their father was leading a double life and would live throughout the year with one of his daughters in New York and then in the summer would go back to the Dominican Republic to be with his other daughter, until he tragically dies in a plane crash.

The tone of the book and the format was spectacular. Having the story told in verse I felt made the story that much more personal and poignant. It really connected me to the characters and made me so much more invested in them individually.

We see both Camino and Yahaira simultaneously having to deal with their father’s death and working through their grief. I loved the contrasts between the two sisters and learning how different both their lives have been even though they both have the same father. How he influenced them both separately yet they still have similar memories about his mannerisms and his overall presence.

Camino felt a little more passive and naïve to me. She is hopeful when she finds out about her sister and wasn’t as betrayed be her father than what Yahaira was. Her relationship with her Tia was wonderful to read and I just loved the fact that she chose to stay with Camino to raise her after her sister died even though she knew what her brother in law was doing in New York.

Yahaira had a bit more of that New Yorker attitude I felt. She really had to step up when her mother couldn’t cope with her grief and make sure that they weren’t being taken advantage of by their extended family. I think he anger with her father and her sister was natural but the fact that she overcame that and replied to Camino really showed her true character.

The overall theme of grief and sisterhood really impacted me and at times made me tear up a little. The scene in the rain where Yahaira, her mother and Tia went and saved Camino from El Cero was very powerful.

Overall this was a pretty fast read for me even though the pacing was a little stalled at times. I would of liked to get more time with the sisters actually together and getting to know each other a bit more as opposed to having the majority of the story with them separated.

⭐️4/5 stars Highly enjoyed, highly recommend!

Reviews

When Dimple Met Rishi Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on When Dimple Met Rishi Review

28458598This book is a fun contemporary about a girl named Dimple who has just graduated high school and is going to a 6 week course at San Francisco University where she meets Rishi. They have been brought together by their parents to hopefully get married one day, Dimple is very much opposed to the union and Rishi wanting to appease his parents has agreed.

This seems unrealistic but I have a feeling this kind of situation probably happens often. I think the fact that Dimple’s parents didn’t warn her first was a little problematic especially when they feigned innocence when she called and confronted them. But they do end up apologising and supporting Dimple’s decision in the end.

Dimple came across a little arrogant at times for me. She can be quite dramatic and doesn’t really take into consideration other people’s thoughts and opinions. She writes Rishi off pretty quickly and then once she gets to know him realises how wrong she is and then pushes him away again. It was a little frustrating and I thought it was a little ironic that she called Rishi the coward.

 I actually really enjoyed Rishi, I found him adorably naïve when it came to Dimple and their first meeting was hilariously cute. The respect he has for his parents was honourable and even though he disagrees with them in the end he was able to work it out maturely. I loved that he has a backbone and calls out inappropriate behaviour from those around him, not caring if he made people uncomfortable!

Culture really means a lot to both Dimple and Rishi and I loved that it was explored throughout the course of the plot line. Their beliefs had an impact upon every decision that they made and we see them both reflecting a lot on what their parents would think and how they would be perceived in their community.

I just thought the relationship progressed too quickly and felt a little rushed to me. I would have liked if they would have more time to cultivate their friendship before jumping straight into a quite serious relationship in the course of a month. Even though they met when they were younger it wasn’t as if they were ever friends.  Just a tad too insta-lovey for me personally!

⭐️3/5 Cute, fun, didn’t blow me away by any means!