V.E. Schwab does not disappoint. The background to some familiar characters from the first book was great and love the female presence in this book. <3
I had head a lot about this book and how people raved about it. Honestly, it didn't live up to they hype for me. There were a few beautiful poems and verses and some that were touching, but I expected more. Not that it's bad by any means. A good read, some good pages, but nothing that will really stick with me. Regardless, you can tell there's passion in her writing and I will always love any book that promotes feminism and encourages women to be true and be strong.
“Even if Grace totally bombs, it's okay. Because we'll still like her and so will everyone else”
RATING: 4 stars (probably closer to 3-3.5, but it's inflated up because of my love for feminism and girl power stories)
QUICK NOTE: Be warned reading this book! It does have some parts that are hard if you've been through assault yourself. It definitely unsettled me and I had to take a break or two near the first few chapters.
THE GOOD –> I describe myself as a very passionate feminist, so the cover itself instantly intrigued me. The story was full of some very raw and powerful stories, and I loved the story-telling style the author employed. Switching between each of the three protagonist sis not some thing new I've seen in books, but the inclusion of the “US” viewpoint chapters were a stroke of genius. I love how she employed these chapters to give us snippets of lives of everyone else in the literary world she created, which also gave us space to understand the voices of many different women. Those in favor of what the protagonists had started and those who weren't. Feminism is all about choice and voice, so I loved hearing the voices of all girls; those of different races, those who felt the ‘movement' created by the protagonists didn't include them, those who were minor characters, those hurt and those who lashed out.
The mirror of the beginning to the end was a beautiful work, and I adore that the writer didn't try to wave a magic wand and make everything perfect.
THE NOT SO GOOD –> Especially near the end it felt like the author was trying very hard to victimize the protagonists and the girls to emphasize the unfairness of it all. I get why it was done, to push them further into the role of ‘this is unfair' and ‘we have to fight this', but at times it seemed to comical to dark and unexplained from people who's motives we never understood. There were also some loose threads I won't mention because it's a spoiler, but I feel like one of the main characters definitely did not get everything fully resolved.
SPOILERS OF THE ABOVE: I feel as if Erin's agency wasn't fully explored with the sexual assault near the end. Yes she 'woke up' to defend the girl who was raped a ton over, but it never even addressed whether Erin wanted to report her assault. She didn't have to if that was her choice, but it wasn't even addressed. It was brushed aside. Rosina's character also seemed more broken by the end result, but it also wasn't fully touched on or explored. Where does this leave Rosina?
** 3.5**
I have mixed feelings about this book the more I think about.
The world building and shifting points of view were very fascinating, but I feel it was missing continuing development. I particularly enjoyed the queens stories, and wished there was more focus on them and their backgrounds. All the queens held secrets, but they weren't all revealed, so while some of this shifting of the politics at the end make sense to the reader, it feels flat coming from characters who didn't experience the same journey and same shifting perspectives the reader did.
The murder-mystery aspect definitely kept me drawn in and wanting more, however it unraveled very quick and felt slightly unsatisfying of an end to the story. Also, I love a good romance, but given how different they were in personality, it did feel rushed.
WARNINGS FOR THOSE WANTING TO READ
-I appreciate when queer characters are included in a book, but lament at how often they fall into the bury your gays trope. This book does that.
- There's a theme of denouncing this attainment for perfection (genetic perfection), but it doesn't quite ring true at the end, and falls flat of calling out the idea of having to fit in a perfect cookie cutter mold at the end. I understand that can be triggering and feels triggering to me as someone who carries her own invisible medical labels and is looked at something to erase/improve in order to be as worthy as others.
Regardless, this was an entertaining reading and definitely kept me engaging as I went through this journey.
