God I love it whenever Dokja (view spoiler)[decides to up and adopt a child. (hide spoiler)] I have a feeling things are about to get devastating soonGod I love it whenever Dokja (view spoiler)[decides to up and adopt a child. (hide spoiler)] I have a feeling things are about to get devastating soon :/...more
If there's ever an award for the-book-that-made-me-shut-it-and-frantically-pace-around-the-room-the-most, this one would take the cake. I had to sit aIf there's ever an award for the-book-that-made-me-shut-it-and-frantically-pace-around-the-room-the-most, this one would take the cake. I had to sit and let it marinate after every. single. chapter.
Jean Moreau, you deserve all the sunshine in the world. I can't wait for the sequel so we can actually see Jean getting the sunshine that he deserves. And special shoutout to Barkbark Von Barkenstein!
Many beloved characters made wonderful cameos. Andrew, Wymack, Kevin, etc, but NEIL JOSTEN??? He's extra sexy in this book gosh I love seeing my feral child from others' POV.
Nora, please make this a trilogy, even if it means a longer waiting time. Please, please, please, please, please....more
There are certain stories in here that are absolutely amazing, stunning, show-stopping, five star worthy (see: Son NeI'm very conflicted on this one.
There are certain stories in here that are absolutely amazing, stunning, show-stopping, five star worthy (see: Son Nefes, Lazarus, etc). Some added 13 years to my life and some were devastating, soul-shattering, and gut-wrenching.
But there are certain things that I just can't agree with. Most of these are regarding Andrew's mental health. Why create such a wonderful, complex character and give him a satisfying conclusion and a promising future for the most part, only to say he won't make much progress in healing? (view spoiler)[Andreil never saying "I love you" makes sense in a way. Even though they do in my head, and even though it hurts to think about, I can live with it. Because they don't need to say it. They show it and they know it. But then, there are other things like saying Andreil are not the hugging type or that Andrew will never be able to laugh because of his trauma? Not even with, around, or because of Neil?? Not even 5, 10, 20 years down the line? Have you heard that boy roasting people? He can be funny, and I'm sure Andrew would find it funnier than anybody else. And they totally cuddle every chance they get (with consent, of course), change my mind. I mean, they were practically always in each other's space canonically.
The other thing that bothered me so much is Allison going back into the fashion industry after everything she's been through? It just doesn't make sense for her to not go pro. That is not a satisfying conclusion for her character at all. Add this on top of the fact that none of the other female foxes go pro as well, it just leaves a bad taste in the mouth. (hide spoiler)]
Like I can see how some of these can be realistic, but sometimes all you need is that and they all played their made-up sport happily ever after and adopted 97435 cats. And that, my friends, is what imagination and fan fiction are for....more
One word to sum up this whole book. (view spoiler)[Andreil being endgame? Satisfaction. Nathan's death? Satisfaction. Foxes on vacay? SaSatisfaction.
One word to sum up this whole book. (view spoiler)[Andreil being endgame? Satisfaction. Nathan's death? Satisfaction. Foxes on vacay? Satisfaction. Jean out of the Nest? Satisfaction. Neil's deal with Ichirou? Satisfaction. Kevin stepping on court left-handed and with a new tattoo? Satisfaction. Andrew taking Exy seriously? Satisfaction. Foxes winning the NCAA championship? Satisfaction. Riko's arm broken? Satisfaction. Riko's death? Satisfaction. Satisfaction. Satisfaction. (hide spoiler)]
I could go on and on about how exponentially the writing has improved, the beauty of circular endings, intricate and well-developed characters and such, but we're gonna be here for a super long time, then....more
Okay, let me get the things I didn't like out of the way first: - There are a lot of unrealistic things like the yakuza, the government/judiciarPhewwww
Okay, let me get the things I didn't like out of the way first: - There are a lot of unrealistic things like the yakuza, the government/judiciary system/or the lack of it?, Andrew's drugs and how they work, drugs in general tbh, the dialogue at times, that one live TV scene, all the violence, so many things about this made up sport, I could go on. - Being info dump-y while somehow not dumping any info at all? Focussing on explaining the not-so-important parts (which I actually quite liked), but not properly explaining the things that really matter (which was annoying). I felt like a lot of names just sprang out of nowhere. Bless ebook search function for saving me multiple times. - WHAT ARE THE RULES OF THIS GODFORSAKEN GAME? How do they play it? Why is it so violent? What is the shape and size of the ball? What is the shape and size of the goal? What is the shape and size of the racquet? How sturdy and how deep is the net, if they're meant to smack AND catch with it? How did it get so popular in such a short time? I can't visualise anything other than the court. Maybe it's the curse being non-American. - There are quite a few clichés. Be it the personality of the characters, or their behaviour, or the plot. - The writing did read like a fan fiction at times. I wasn't bothered by it as long as it didn't leave out necessary details and drove me crazy. Just a thing to note.
NOW THAT THAT'S OUT OF THE WAY
AHEM
THIS WAS SO FUN??
Like, I do realise that the way I fell in love at chapter 1 was most definitely due to seeing this series EVERYWHERE and growing fond of the characters before I knew anything about them. And the constant comparison to the sister fandoms that I am actively a part of — I'm talking about Tumblr's Holy Corvid Trinity, of course (Six of Crows, The Raven Cycle, and this one, if you didn't know). Plus, it's character driven + gay + dysfunctional + found family + sports + mafia. I mean, that's right up my alley.
Let's talk about the characters. NEIL JOSTEN, my love. I don't know what it is about him that captivated me from the beginning, but I absolutely adore him, he's my little pookie. Although, he's gotta have to sort his priorities out lmao (bro was more scared of Kevin potentially hating him than getting murdered by his mafia family, I gotta respect that). I hope one day my boy is able to live freely without being paranoid about every little thing.
I know, I listed a lot of gripes I had with Exy, but listen, IT'S A CO-ED SPORT!! I love the girls and I hope we get to see a lot more of them in the upcoming books. Renee Walker, I don't know anything about you, but I love you. Matt is an absolute sweetheart. So is Dan. I wish we got to see more of Allison and Seth. Coach Wymack, what a gigachad. I loved his dynamic with the kids, and loved the way he handles them. I need to see more of Betsy and Abby, as well.
Now moving on to Andrew's lot. For a good majority of the book, I didn't understand how I was supposed to believe that Neil is going to end up being friends — or, uhhh, lovers — with any of these people. Nicky, I have to admit, I didn't like him in the beginning, most definitely hated him in the middle, didn't like him in the end. Aaron is... just there, I guess? I forget he exists half of the time. Kevin reminds me of Rin Itoshi from Blue Lock, so I automatically like him. Andrew, well, sometimes I'm absolutely in love with him, sometimes I don't have an opinion on him, sometimes I flat out don't like him. This roller coaster is perfect to his character to a T, so kudos to that. I can smell the sibling angst coming up, and sibling angsts are always the death of me. Praying for my future self.
Random other things I liked: The last couple of chapters were WILD! I literally couldn't put the book down. A lot of messed up things happened. Almost all of the characters are clinically insane and need therapy. They hate each other, but if you try to hate them, they'll hate you more. All the little things Neil did out of paranoia (sitting in the back of the classroom where no one can approach from behind, or in the middle of the car where he could see both the driver and the passenger). The banter and the chemistry between the Foxes. The way the queer characters were represented. How funny a lot of the scenes were.
It doesn't matter if you like this book, or think it's trash. I think we all can agree that the Moriyamas have a special place in hell. And that chapter 7 was mega messed up.
TL;DR This book is unhinged and definitely not for everyone. If you are willing to overlook certain aspects and just read for the fun it brings, go ahead. But, I strongly urge everyone to look up the content warnings before proceeding....more
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