Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - White Ivy

disclaimer if you’ve read other reviews by me and are noticing a pattern: You’re correct that I don’t really give starred reviews, I feel like a peasant and don’t like leaving them and most often, I will only leave them if I vehemently despised a book. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless if I add stars or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial

Look, this is a compelling read but holyyyyyyyyy shit, are these humans insufferable!!!! The text examines topics of family, optics, wealth, classism, racism, being othered, and doing whatever you can to get what you want.

This made me think of how I felt when I was watching the first few episodes of Succession and I didn't realize it was a dramedy(drama/comedy). I was literally sitting there thinking, 'Why are all of these people SO horrible to each other?!' That's how I felt about the characters in White Ivy, but it never got better and it never made me laugh like Succession did.

I don't love the homophobic undertones of your sexuality being compared to an ACTUAL crime .... Other than this, the book did reel me in from start to finish and I finished in one sitting because I was curious how this mess would play out.

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knkoch's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Hmmm. I feel conflicted about this one. It read like a literary thriller, and reminded me a lot of Lucy Foley’s The Guest List, with a bit less propulsion and plot twist. The sinister natures of the characters, the internal anguish, haunted pasts, corruptive nature of visible wealth and luxury, not to mention the deep dread of an upcoming wedding (!).

There are some interesting ideas explored here, like the contrast between visible and quiet wealth. The way the wholesomeness of Gideon and Ivy’s families seem to switch from childhood to adulthood, in the same way their finances do, seems to speak to the way poverty grinds people down into worse versions of themselves. And the treatment of the Lin’s immigrant experience is handled well. But I can’t really see myself recommending this book. I lost heart in all of the characters about two thirds of the way through. When I can’t identify with anyone’s choices or motivations in a story, I struggle to stay invested in the outcome. To me, there’s just no light in this. I guess I need more of that in a story, somewhere, so this one was just too dark and grim for me.

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meb1073's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I had so many mixed feelings about this book, but overall they were positive.
There were some parts about this book that were slightly unrealistic, or just didn't make sense. The fact that

both Roux and Gideon happen to come back into her life, at the same time and place

....I don't know about that one. And then the fact that

Gideon would even remember her, after over 10 years, really took me out of the story for a second, because it felt so...forced?

The main character of this book was also a TRAINWRECK. I could see if a lot of people reading the story had a hard time continuing, because she was made so unlikeable. But in a weird sort of way, I felt this pull to keep reading, because I just had to know how it ended. It got more and more crazy as it went on, to where you just couldn't look away. And given the background of her story, I think it was almost designed to make sense. I think the author wanted to convey the difficulties of living in a lower income, immigrant household, and how much it can affect an individual's psyche.
While it had its problems, I realllyyyy enjoyed the writing style of this book. The author is really good at captivating the story in a way that keeps it interesting. I really liked the inclusion of the culture especially; it was sprinkled and placed in a way that wasn't too overwhelming. I would most likely read another book by this same author.

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kylieqrada's review against another edition

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dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

She's just not for me.

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angstyevie's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

kelly_e's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

2.0

Title: White Ivy
Author: Susie Yang
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 2.0
Pub Date: November 3, 2020

T H R E E • W O R D S

Daring • Vindictive • Modern

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Ivy Lin, moved to America with her family as a young girl and grows up in a low-income complex in Massachusetts while attending a wealthy school thanks to her father's job. Her grandmother, and mentor, has taught her to take what she wants or needs. She is desperate to assimilate with her peers, but her family has other plans for her. When she develops an obsession with golden-boy Gideon Speyer, her overbearing mother steps in. Throughout all of this Ivy develops a taste for winning and wealth, and will go to great lengths to get what she wants. An exploration of immigration, class, race, family and identity.

💭 T H O U G H T S

White Ivy is the immigrant story I was not expecting from debut author Susie Yang. With a cast of complex characters, the real stand out here is the writing. Yang built the drama and intensity in such a way that the reader feels immersed in Ivy's story as she tests the boundaries in order to get what she wants. I also liked the exploration of opposing forces; preserving heritage and tradition, or assimilating. But for me that good end there, and without the help of the audiobook I'm not sure I would have made it through. I definitely have a hard time getting behind such a manipulative, narcissistic, and selfish character, where at times it simply felt the author was going for shock value.

Ivy is definitely a character I won't soon forget, so I guess Yang has succeed there, but this story was just not for me.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers who like unlikeable characters
• anyone looking for an own voices immigrant story

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"She had long ago realized that the truth wasn't important, it was the apperance of things that would serve her.
Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear."

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