Siren Queen

Um. I wanted to like this book way more than I did. Luli was insufferable and I get it, she viewed herself as a cold and monstrous thing, but she was really just self-centered at the end of the day. Not unlike any other person starved for fame. The symbolism wasn't lost on me, but the fantasy elements were so weird that I didn't appreciate them in the way the author intended. Her experiences were going to be specific to not just being a woman trying to make it to the silver screen, but a queer Asian actress. If it was stripped down to Luli's climb through old Hollywood and her romantic encounters, I would have liked it more. I just needed it to either tilt into full fantasy or tilt all the way to historical fiction. The magical realism in this instance was not working for me. Henry and Greta were great. Emmaline's negative character arc was great and I was glad that Luli ended up happy with Jane. I liked it, but I didn't love it.