charmel's reviews
232 reviews

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I don't usually rate historical fiction this high. but damn.. this book is the first to be one of ✨ the only exception ✨

“Haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like to have nothing keeping you attached to the ground?”

Last Night at the Telegraph Club is a lovely coming of age story of Lily Hu, a 17-year-old Chinese-American, set in the 1950s in Chinatown (San Francisco).

Queer Asian Historical Fiction?? Women interested in STEM? YESSS

“Perhaps that was the most perverse part of this: the inside-outness of everything, as if denial would make it go away, when it only made the pain in her chest tighten, when it only made her emotions clearer.”

At first, I was having difficulties adjusting to Malinda Lo's writing style, but as chapters went by and when I was around 40%, I started warming up to it. Malinda Lo managed to capture the emotions of self-discovery, belonging, first love, and life in the early 1950s as a Chinese American.

By the author's note on the last pages, I could tell that the author did thorough research. As a result, the setting was atmospheric. The mouth-watering descriptions of the foods, the details about the 1950s Chinatown, were all beautiful. It felt as if I were transported into Lily's world.

I loved Lily. Her character was complex, and nicely fleshed out. I loved her curiosity and passion and her coming-out-of-age discovery and lesbian awakening. Kath's character was at first a bit bland, it was hard to tell her apart from everyone. Still, she grew on me and I found her quite fascinating in the end. The romance between them wasn't rushed, it was splendidly slowly building up until both of them are ready, and out embracing their true selves.

The side characters as well were realistic. Shirley's and Lily's family's thoughts about her coming out make sense, even though it was painfully annoying. The telegraph club crew was fantastic and they too tell each different personal stories.

“She’s having a hard time right now because you’re not what she expected. But we’re never what our parents expected. They have to learn that lesson.”

Honestly, I just started lnattc because I couldn't fathom how close I am to finishing ove. I didn't expect to very much enjoy and adore this book. This really made me feel the feels, and I loooveeed it.

Overall, LNATTC was such an interesting and heartfelt read. The historical aspect was amazing. The characters were great, I liked reading from the mc's perspective. And the story was a breath of fresh air aaaaa. 4 stars ✨

“There was probably a scientific explanation for it, but the older she got, the more she was inclined to give in to the feeling that these moments were glimpses into a world greater than this physical one. It was as if there were cycles that repeated themselves over and over, but most people never saw the repetition; they were too deeply enmeshed in their own path to see.”

The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag

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hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

cute animations but i tbh, kinda expected more... :))

Not My Problem by Ciara Smyth

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Not my Problem in three words is quick, lighthearted, and funny!
It follows Aideen, a witty and vibrant teen with tons of problems of her own but decides to solve others' problems instead of solving hers.

“I want you to game the system. Don’t let it beat you.”

Aideen's character and personality were entertaining. Her coping mechanism is humor and sarcasm. If she were my classmate, I'd want to be friends with her and I would definitely laugh freely at every joke she'll crack, ~~let's not mention my broken humor.~~

From the blurb, I kind of expected to have this book centered on romance. Except, I think this revolved more about Aideen's problems, social life, and friendship, which made it actually better.

The newly formed friendship between Ravi, Meabh, and Aideen was amazing, I learned so many cute lessons from them! Ravi was an icon, I liked his talkative, energetic, and supportive characteristics. I adored Meabh as well, she was compassionate and a bit relatable.

“I don’t know what’s going on with you. I wish you would tell me, but I respect that maybe you have a good reason not to. But I am not disposable. I’m not a toy you can play with when it suits you and then ignore when you have other stuff to do. If you want to be my friend, you have to stop treating me like I don’t exist if you’re not looking directly at me.”

The friendship that we have in this book was authentic and it's the best thing here. I understood how painful it is to experience friendship break-ups, yet we shall move on from toxicity and go on. I couldn't help but sympathize with Aideen.

Overall, this was a fun read. It dealt with some topics done nicely. Although there were times where I found stuff lacking, this was still a refreshing read to get my mind off things. 3.5 stars✨

Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

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adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

cademic rivals to friends to lovers that hit diff + this book made me feel.. things... = 4 wholesome stars ✨

and yeesss, rowan breaking stereotypes!?! go queen

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

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funny informative lighthearted relaxing fast-paced