Category: 3 star

3 star, YA

ARC Review: Clementine and Danny Save the World (and Each Other) by Livia Blackburne

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

You’ve Got Mail gets a YA twist in this rom-com that spotlights the power of activism and community organizing in the face of gentrification.

Clementine Chan believes in the power of the written word. Under the pseudonym Hibiscus, she runs a popular blog reviewing tea shops and discussing larger issues within her Chinatown community. She has a loyal, kind following, save for this one sour grape named BobaBoy888.

Danny Mok is allergic to change, and the gentrification seeping into Chinatown breaks his heart. He channels his frustration into his internet alter ego, BobaBoy888, bickering with local blogger Hibiscus over all things Chinatown and tea.

When a major corporation reveals plans that threaten to shut down the Mok’s beloved tea shop, Clementine and Danny find themselves working together in real life to save this community they both love. But as they fall hard for this cause—and each other—they have no clue that their online personas have been fighting for years.

When the truth comes to light, can Danny and Clementine still find their happily-ever-after?

Overall Recommendation:

Clementine and Danny Save the World (and Each Other) is an introspective take on Chinese culture and its impact on the diaspora community that settles in a North American city, especially the gentrification of old neighborhoods. The seriousness of the subject matter is routinely balanced out with the levity of tea blogging and many fun facts on the appropriate brewing of tea. I feel more connected to such a story as a Chinese reader, however I do think this story is informational in a way that’ll connect others too.

**Clementine and Danny Saves the World (and Each Other) comes out July 18, 2023**

Thank you Edelweiss and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review

Where shall I begin?

First of all, as a Chinese Canadian reader, I feel pretty close to the subject matter at hand. In this story, Clementine and Danny fight against the impending take over by some big corporate group of a strip mall in Chinatown where they grew up in their town. While it may seem the revamping of an old mall would be ideal for the neighborhood on paper, it really can have negative consequences for the regular patrons and shop owners who actually live in the area.

I will admit I have some mixed and conflicting feelings that I do feel the book fleshes out. Danny, as the son of the owners of Fragrant Leaves, the tea shop in said strip mall, has good insight into the loss of such of corporate takeover. Besides losing out their business and livelihood, what makes up the beating heart of Chinatown will be lost. What exactly is that, you ask?

Chinatown isn’t just made up of the independent stores there. It’s in the elderly who regularly hang out in such places to socialize, play mahjong, and drink some tea. It’s in the hardships the immigrating generation conquered or persevered through the losses to come out on the other side. It’s the memories steeped into a place, the tears and sweat poured out within the confines of old decor and non-modernized technology.

Yes, there is loss here, always, when old is replaced with new. However, there is a flip side, and Clementine brings that into perspective. As a daughter of successful journalists who are considered more upper class, she brings ideas of modernization, Asian fusion and social media connections to promote Asian culture, even in the form of the kinds of tea to drink. She sometimes is idealistic and/or ignorant with her ideas that she posts to her tea blog – reviewing tea sounds like a fun topic actually – but I can also see where she’s coming from. Sometimes, change is necessary to adapt. Culture and tradition have its place, but it’s not traitorous to suggest a middle ground for the next generation in the diaspora to learn and love components of Chinese culture. We are the diaspora, after all. Two identities waging war, fitting in both cultures…or fitting in none.

I didn’t love that Danny made it seem Clementine was always in the wrong for her suggestions. She loved Chinatown, and this was her genuine way to try to bring in more people. Not all ideas work, but her heart was always in the right place. I’m not sure if the author also believes Danny’s POV and pragmatism is always right, but my personal take away is it’s always complicated. Some things I love to keep it the traditional way (drinking pu’erh tea with milk or sugar is a big fat NO), but I also love Asian fusion dishes that certain dim sum places offer.

That brings me to the romance. I honestly didn’t feel it. Danny was so awful to Clementine in her blog’s comment section, even though he didn’t know her to be the anonymous tea blogger. And when some of the things she believed about her Chinese culture differed from what he did, he blew up at her. His apology wasn’t enough, especially when he came across as superior because his parents worked physically hard to keep their store afloat. Are you saying Asians who study hard to afford more white collar jobs and therefore have more money only want to gentrify neighborhoods? He got on my nerves with his self righteousness. So no, I didn’t understand the reality of a romance forming here unless Clem changed all her beliefs to fit his.

The activism part of the story was purely informational, and frankly took up way too much page space. We don’t get to see these two characters anywhere outside of volunteering for the Chinatown nonprofit to save the neighborhood. Besides that they care about their neighborhood, there was little else about them we get to see. Additionally, how all their work played out didn’t really satisfy at the climax which made me wonder why so much time was given to this plot element.

All in all, I like the discussion around Chinese culture, tradition versus modernized “influencer” views, and the impact Chinatown has on those around it. I definitely felt seen with my array of emotions stemming from personal experiences in such places growing up. I didn’t love the ending or the romance but I firmly believe it is still a good read for Asian and non-Asian readers alike to learn from and discuss.

3 star, YA

ARC Review: Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

A juicy mystery of jealousy, love, and betrayal set on a Semester at Sea-inspired cruise ship, with a diverse cast of delightfully suspicious characters who’ll leave you guessing with every jaw-dropping twist.

After being jilted by her ex-boyfriend and best friend, Jade couldn’t be more ready to embark on the adventure of a lifetime—11 countries in 4 months, all from the luxurious Campus on Board ship—and to wedge an entire globe between her and the people who broke her heart.

But when Jade discovers the backstabbing couple are also setting sail, her obsession with them grows and festers, leading to a shocking murder. And as their friends begin to drop like flies, Jade and her new crush must race to clear her name and find the killer they’re trapped at sea with….before anyone else winds up in body bags.

Perfect for readers of Natalie D. Richards, E. Lockhart, and Karen McManus!

Overall Recommendation:

Lying in the Deep mostly delivers on what it promises: a tense mystery stuck on a ship with a killer. However, how it reaches the ending was not as unpredictable or compelling as I had hoped, especially with a protagonist I wasn’t sure I liked half the time. Perhaps I read too many mysteries or I’m starting to guess the out of the box scenarios far too often, but there was just something missing here that prevented me from loving it.

**Lying in the Deep comes out May 2, 2023**

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review

I’m starting to believe that I read far too many mysteries to be surprised by “twist” endings. Or perhaps I just think along the same lines as Diana Urban after reading all of her thrillers published so far.

Lying in the Deep advertises itself as a fast-paced, harrowing search for a killer onboard as time runs out before possibly more bodies drop. Everyone is a suspect, perhaps even the protagonist herself. I mean, unreliable narrators are a thing these days, right?

On paper, this book has everything going for it that would lead to a deep seated love for it. Travel? Check. Dead body mystery? Check. Some romance that may or may not be relevant but is still fun to have in a story? Check. Those are all great things that I enjoy. But execution connecting these elements are just as important.

The synopsis and prologue tells you quite early on what the mystery is and who is the one found dead. Unfortunately, it’s not until almost 50% of the way into the book that we get to this point of finding a dead body. For literally the first half of the book, we are getting the opportunity to “get to know all of the suspects onboard”. I understand the importance of setting the scene with a handful of newcomers who all may have a (hidden) motive against the person who ends up dying. But 50% of the book just seems largely too long for that.

It’s also not helpful that I found our protagonist, Jade, not super likable. While I empathize with her situation against her ex best friend and ex-boyfriend, this girl fantasizes far too much about killing them. When her new crush, Felix, comments about her propensity to wake up and choose violence, it’s not entirely untrue. She gives me “unreliable protagonist” vibes. I wondered half the time if the information we are getting about the situation that led to her breakup with the two closest people in her life was missing important details.

Once the mystery does get underway, it felt rushed. Unlike others who have read this book early, I couldn’t get into the tense atmosphere so easily. Yes, there were plenty of suspects onboard but I never felt Jade was in true danger as she ran headlong into solving the mystery herself. Any tense feelings came from the countdown to solve the mystery before the boat made port and all the evidence would be handed over to the local authorities.

For the romance, I understand the chemistry between Jade and Felix but it’s kind of hard to root for a couple when he is also technically a suspect. I also felt the feelings they developed for one another was rather fast. The situations between them were not many prior to the events leading to the murder, plus Jade was mostly preoccupied with her ex whom she still harbored complicated feelings for. I didn’t dislike their romance, but I wouldn’t say I shipped it (ha ha).

The main thing that makes this mystery stand out from others in its genre is the Campus on Board setting. I really did enjoy this. A little bit of travel descriptions were even included for London and Lisbon which makes me crave travelling all the more. I didn’t expect such detailed touristy scenes set in these cities – I thought everything was mostly focused on their time on the boat – so I thoroughly enjoyed seeing these European locales through their eyes. It makes me wish I could’ve done schooling in such a way. You’re never too old to continue learning.

As with all mysteries, I don’t want to say too much about the ending, but I will say that it wasn’t as unpredictable (to me at least) as it seemed. I think I guessed the twist all along but was hoping to be proved wrong. It will shock some people, but I unfortunately was unable to enjoy it in such a manner. If you don’t manage to guess how it all ends, I think it makes the mediocre journey to the ending worthwhile nonetheless. I will always applaud Diana Urban’s out of left field endings, though I have come to expect them. Whether the journey to the end is important to you, or the ending and its twists trump all, Lying in the Deep does offer something unique to readers, even if it isn’t the mystery.

3 star, YA

ARC Review: Begin Again by Emma Lord

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

As usual, Andie Rose has a plan: Transfer from community college to the hyper competitive Blue Ridge State, major in psychology, and maintain her lifelong goal of becoming an iconic self-help figure despite the nerves that have recently thrown her for a loop. All it will take is ruthless organization, hard work, and her trademark unrelenting enthusiasm to pull it all together.

But the moment Andie arrives, the rest of her plans go off the rails. Her rocky relationship with her boyfriend Connor only gets more complicated when she discovers he transferred out of Blue Ridge to her community college. Her roommate Shay needs a major, and despite Andie’s impressive track record of being The Fixer, she’s stumped on how to help. And Milo, her coffee-guzzling grump of an R.A. with seafoam green eyes, is somehow disrupting all her ideas about love and relationships one sleep-deprived wisecrack at a time.

But sometimes, when all your plans are in rubble at your feet, you find out what you’re made of. And when Andie starts to find the power of her voice as the anonymous Squire on the school’s legendary pirate radio station–the same one her mom founded, years before she passed away–Andie learns that not all the best laid plans are necessarily the right ones.

Filled with a friend group that feels like family, an empowering journey of finding your own way, and a Just Kiss Already! romance, Begin Again is an unforgettable novel of love and starting again.

Overall Recommendation:

As college stories go with a coming-of-age trope, Begin Again made itself unique with its fun, personable characters that feel like your friends and an intriguing ribbon hunt organized for freshmans in their second term only. It made me reminiscent of my own college days (though with not quite so much drama). I thought the themes and message were great, but the pacing sometimes was a little slow to the point it became a struggle to push to the end. Otherwise, a solid book by Emma Lord although not what I consider her finest.

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