God I loved this. I, like most people I think, have experienced jealousy in friendships, even a slight feeling of bitterness when someone succeeds in something that you wanted to be better at. Doesn’t make you feel like a great person, but also is a very human thing to feel, I think. But goddamn did June take those feelings to a whole new level.  Like, wow. 

This is one of those books where the villain of the story genuinely believes themselves a victim, and it is equally hilarious and mind-boggling. Kuang is a brilliant writer and perfectly tapped into the White Victim mindset that a lot of people are seeming to have right now, and did it in a way that felt so natural and real. 

June is the most Karen of Karen’s, whining about how people of color actually have it easier because people want to hear diverse voices now—as if somehow we’ve erased centuries of marginalization and suppression of POC voices just to make sure this one white woman can’t succeed. Kuang made June and Athena’s relationship so complex and timely, and yet also made it a dynamic that we’ve seen before and can understand perfectly; they don’t like each other, but they kept the other around to either try and hang on their coattails (June) or affirm that they’ve made it (Athena). June’s slow descent into madness and her increasingly bonkers justifications of her actions were a sight to behold, and I already wish I could read this for the first time again. 

Can’t wait to read Kuangs other books.