Downloaded this onto kindle before a longhaul flight and it was finished long before landing (and I never usually read on planes - it's dodgy movies all the way...). Brilliantly smart skewering of writers and the publishing industry and all (most) all peripherally involved, yet where it could have been a pure takedown it remains thoughtful and generally good-natured towards all parties' relative foibles throughout. Also hilarious. Loved it.

I’ve seen so many people on Bookstagram raving about reading and loving Kuang’s book Babel, but I didn’t quite put two and two together…

I went into this book having never read her writing before and despite taking a bit of time to get into.

I then got really into it and was stressed and gripped all at once… it got me thinking about things I’d never considered.

I saw a review on NetGalley that said the book made them feel uncomfortable and angry, which I’d say is a sign of good writing. However, this book wasn’t my favourite and towards the end I felt quite annoyed with the characters.

⭐️⭐️.75

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for letting me read this ARC!

My thoughts:
This is a very difficult review to write. I wanted to so badly love this book. BUT, I didn't, maybe because I had very high expectations for this book 🤷‍♀️

I think the author was brave to call out the publishing industry like she did, and it felt realistic (up to the last 20%). The first sentence had me hooked, and I was desperate to find out what happens. This was a very quick read for me, as it felt like I read a page, and all of a sudden, I was 30% of the way through.

Time for the negatives:
The first 80% of the book, I would not call a thriller. I was actually bored. I was bored of June and how whiney she was, I usually don't mind unlikeable characters, but she was the worst. I was also bored because I was expecting a thriller (I thought this because Waterstones have said the book is a "humorous literacy thriller"). Well, guess what? I didn't laugh once, and I didn't get a thriller until the last 20%.

When it started to be a thriller (literally the last 20% of the book), I was so excited I thought YES some action here. But, once the twist was revealed I got bored again. It just felt so unrealistic.

The ending felt a bit like a cop out, and it felt rushed.

Overall, it was just a random book, that I felt didn't have much of a structure. It had a tinie tiny bit of a thriller element, but not enough to call it a thriller. I think it is either a love it or hate it book.

This book was described to me as "watching a train wreck, but in a good way" and I couldn't agree more.
Experiencing the book through Juniper's perspective makes the reader automatically want to give her some sympathy and root for her in some way, but time and time again she proves this impossible. This goes beyond morally grey characters, to characters who are just entirely unlikeable but who you still love to follow and watch how everything plays out.

I loved the discussions on the publishing industry and the ownership of work, and how meta and self-aware the book was at various points throughout. As Juniper's mental state deteriorates throughout the book - this girl really needs therapy - the choices she makes continue to get worse and worse, making the reader intensely uncomfortable whilst watching her make these awful choices and try to prove how she's experiencing discrimination and reverse racism. Kuang's writing was so effective throughout that not only do you build a real dislike for Juniper, but you also really do start to hope that things will go wrong for her.

These characters are so intensely real, and while some of the things that happen seem far-fetched, Kuang manages to make it all believable and utterly wrong, keeping the reader on their toes throughout. An incredible read that I can't wait to speak to so many people about and shout about from the rooftops.

📚 r e v i e w 📚
yellowface - rebecca kuang

ok - here’s me reevaluating my entire life because i thought babel was a masterpiece but this - this is on a whole other level.

i don’t think i’ll be able to think about books in the same way for a while after this and i’m now even more excited to hear r f kuang speak at her waterstones event in may!

you can see that kuang has used a lot of her own experiences here and raises some interesting points about plagerism, publishing and who has the right to write what. for a book that isn’t inherently scary, there are a lot of stomach churning moments and in june, kuang has created an incredibly unlikable character that i couldnt look away from. watching her lies unfold was kind of like morbid curiosity but such well written morbid curiosity that it was a joy to experience.

thank you to netgalley for the early copy - yellowface is available wherever books are sold from 25th may.


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Another fantastic read from Rebecca Kuang. Kuang has an incredible way to make each book she writes extremely thought provoking. Her writing style is flawless. This book is obviously very different from her Poppy War series, but not less brilliant. I feel like this is a book every one should read.

R.F. Kuang's Yellowface is a masterfully written satire that takes an unflinching look at the underbelly of the publishing industry. Kuang is a one-of-a-kind writer and her masterful literary skills are on full display in this darkly funny thriller. The story follows an unreliable narrator who attempts to pass off a manuscript written by a more successful Asian author as her own. This book made me uncomfortable in the best possible way. The writing is incredibly engaging and encourages readers to keep their eyes glued to the page, as the suspense builds and the train wreck slowly plays out. Yellowface is an essential read from the New York Times bestselling author, and an incredible example of Kuang's brilliance.

Rebecca Kuang has been on thelist of my favourite authors ever since "The Poppy War". Even though "Yellowface" was a shift from her standard genre and narration, Kuang didn't disappoint and created one of the most insightful, sharp, and witty protagonists I've read in a long time. I knew she could write epic fantasies, but 'Yellowface" is a craftsmanship in character building.

June Hayward is definetely a main character you want to read about, and she knows it. She may have stolen her best selling novel and conduct various acts of cultural appropriation along the way, but one way or the other, she will be a successful author, no matter the cost. Even though we are stuck in her head because of the first-person narration, she is a character a reader loves to hate, or, hate to love. She's equally insuffreble, confident, and intellingent, a hero or a villain, who makes the most out of a truly wrong and despicable act, Until the very last pages the reader is not sure how the story is going to end. Additionally, I learnt a lot about the publishing industry, and how it is, in fact, quite toxic and highly stressful.

Definetrly can't wait for whatever Rebecca Kuang surprises us with next!

4.5 stars.

This is such a page-turner, I was enticed from the first line, and it only got better from there. This story touches on so many important issues, and I have never read anything like it before. It tackles racism in both the publishing industry, and in everyday life. The main character is white and couldn't possibly be racist because she voted for Biden, then proceeds to steal the work of her deceased friend, Athena Liu and passes it off as her own, and shit gets real from there. It was a wild ride, extremely eye-opening, an uncomfortable read at times, and it has solidified me as an R. F. Kuang fan. I cannot recommend it enough.
I received this book as an eARC from Harper Collins on NetGalley.

I went into this novel thinking it might be something along the lines of Babel. It’s not. But R.F. Kuang can write about ANYTHING! Seriously, she is so talented I want to be her.

And our unreliable narrator June Hayworth/Juniper Song wants to be just like Athena Liu. Both Yale graduates and writers, Athena is successful, beautiful, she can do no wrong. June on the other hand, has a failed novel.

We start strong, the novel is fast paced, quick witted and uses a lot of satirical humour. June is there the night Athena dies choking on a pancake. She sees her opportunity and steals Athena’s recently finished manuscript which details Chinese Labour Corps in WW1. June claims she is just “fixing” the novel and it becomes a success.

With her success comes interrogation, a lot of Twitter discourse, GoodReads reviews and a question as to whether June (now published until Juniper Song and with a racially ambiguous authors photo) has the right as a white person to write about struggles faced by POC.

The novel is full of complex topics such as white saviourism, fetishisation, tokenism, racism, what it is to be a white woman, privileges, cancel culture and more.

R.F. Kuang really calls out the world of publication, which makes for an uncomfortable and humorous read.

June is the best kind of unreliable narrator as we both wish for her downfall and also root for her not to get caught. She’s profiting off of the ideas of her Asian American friend and feels entitled to do so. She believes as though she has it HARDER because nowadays publishers and organisations aim for diversity, so POC have it easier. As a POC, I just know that not to be true (tokenism!!) but it’s entertaining to see June’s viewpoints.

It’s so incredibly frustrating but also done with so much humour. June is exaggeratory and aggravating but she is also a window into the world of publication and a voice for various important topics.

The novel remains strong throughout and also offers different genres, experimental in that it is contemporary literary fiction but also veers into thriller and horror at parts. The ghost of Athena Liu haunting the narrative throughout.

It’s definitely not Babel and it’s hard not to compare given Babel was released relatively recently and made such a significant impact on its readers - but Yellowface is an incredible read regardless.

I requested Yellowface on the strength of the author's entertaining 'Babel' last year (which I thought was partly terrific, and partly in-need-of-some-tighter-editing). Even if Babel wasn’t perfect, I figured that with so much imagination and creativity (not least in one so impressively young; check out her wikipedia page, just remarkable what she has achieved) R.F. Kuang was absolutely worth keeping an eye on.

And…I’m certainly glad I did! I am slightly torn between a 4 and 5* rating for this (let’s call it 4.5 and then round it up), but it is one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read in some time. Darkly gripping, addictive (I rattled through it over the Easter weekend), amusing, thought-provoking… in places it felt perhaps a tad cinematic (I have little doubt it will be turned into a movie down the line) but the central premise draws you in extremely seductively and things unfold uncomfortably from there. I did wonder if the author was going to be able to find a conclusion worthy of the neatly structured set-up that precedes it, and whilst I’m not entirely convinced by a pivotal denouement near the end, it was still a highly satisfying read which will remain with me for some time.

Having come across this promotional quote from the author regarding Yellowface - “If reading it feels a bit like watching a train crash in slow motion, then I’ll have done my job.” - then I would certainly say she has managed this!

With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

OK, so I am speechless about this book. I don't know where to start this review. So let's first say, this is not like other R.F kuang books. It is contemporary, not fantasy or historical fiction.

This book is the story of a petty, entitled, jealous lady so deep in her white privilege that she is incapable of seeing farther than her own nose. She steals her friend's  manuscript the night she died and makes it pass for her work. We read a lot about why she does it and all the motives and motivations for what she does. You won't like or connect with the characters in this book. Our main character, I would say, is morally grey but, is a very dark grey, and it is scary to know that the world is full of people like her. But she isn't the only character and all the rest are quite bad as well. The least bad  would be Athena,  who's dead from the beginning of the book and who is still human and, as such, not perfect.

This book is meant to make you feel uncomfortable, especially if you are white and benefits of white privilege, as I am. I kept  wondering how many people in my surroundings would read this book and believe June was right in her behaviour. I believe this is a must read for everyone. It shows us the more socially accepted white privilege and racist thoughts in a way that makes you cringe as they should and you won't be able to escape how messed up those thoughts actually are. There is no denying it. That's why everyone must read this. 

All the intricacies and narrative about authors and publishing in the book are really interesting. Although I know this is a small experience of publishing likely based on the experience of the author herself, it is still truthful, realistic and messed up. 

All the online scandals were very familiar and it would be for any of you that have been part of the bookish community for a while. I can see a lot of similarities with things that have happened in the last few years in the community; plagiarism, racism, xenophobia and all kinds of things. It was very interesting seeing them lay there in a couple of sentences. 

This is a real page turner. I read it in a day. I recommend this book to everyone and especially if you are a Bookworm and part of the bookish community, I think you all would enjoy this one a lot

Yellowface by Rebecca F Kuang
I give this book 4.5 stars

When Athena dies in a freak accident, June steals her unpublished manuscript and publishes it.
But as evidence threatens June’s stolen success, she will discover exactly how far she will go.
What happens next is entirely everyone else’s fault.

This book is written in the first person (so buckle up to be in Junes head) The author has created a fantastic morally grey character and I found myself frustrated of her being aware her actions are wrong but equally totally justifying those actions,she’s definitely a character you’ll love to hate! The plotline itself tackles cancel culture,ethics,cultural appropriation,racism & diversity.lt will definitely appeal to readers and writers as you get to delve deep into the publishing world’s underbelly. A controversial and thought provoking story that everyone will be talking about. Would make a perfect book club read. Contemporary,dark and satirical….. how far would you go for success!!
With thanks to Netgalley,Rebecca Kuang and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction, The Borough Press for my chance to read and review this book.

I don’t know how to describe how much I enjoyed this book without shouting oh my god over and over and over. The ending? The way it will work out in her favour? The beginning? Wow.

I’ve been a huge fan of R.F. Kuang’s work and this book did not disappoint! While it was a little outside of my comfort zone (I’m more of a fantasy reader), I still really enjoyed it. It shows a really important part of the publishing industry that I’d only just seen as a fairly new reader, and it felt very reflective of the atmosphere of the world right now. It really showed you the ugly side of people, which was slightly uncomfortable but much needed.

I'm going to start by saying that this review is not going to be the most articulate, but alas I will try.

If you're going into Yellowface hoping for likable characters then be warned now that you're not going to find any. In my opinion, the book's purpose isn't for any of the characters to be likable. I went into it the same way I do with mysteries, not expecting to like any of them, but there for the plot.

Yellowface is very meta. If you're familiar with Book Twitter a lot of the discussions and discourse in it will feel familiar. In a way, it's a relevant and necessary expose on the climate of publishing, which for the most part is glamourised. This shows it in a different light, although it's fiction I feel a lot of what Kuang has put in Yellowface is a real reflection of the bookish world.

I flew through Yellowface in all it's satirical glory, needing to know what the unhinged main character would do next. Although I'm a big fantasy reader I was never interested in reading Kuang's Poppy War trilogy. Her next book Babel was more up my alley and I ended up loving it. Yellowface is another hit. I honestly can't wait to see what book R.F. Kuang publishes next!

Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

And honest, it shall be.

I requested an early copy of Yellowface because RF Kuang has been an auto-buy author for me ever since The Poppy War. That trilogy truly blew me away and kept me thoroughly engaged and trapped within its pages throughout, and I also really enjoyed Babel. Yellowface, when compared to those, feels like it was written by a completely different author. I could have been given this book without knowing the author, and I would have never guessed that it was written by Kuang. In and of itself, that’s not a bad thing. It’s a bad thing when it’s a fairly mediocre book. Writing a Goodreads review for it as well as the publisher is quite ironic when I think about it.

RF Kuang describes Yellowface as a ‘zippy, ridiculous thriller’ and calls it her ‘ridiculous, absurd, gremlin book,’ and to be completely honest… it’s a bit too ridiculous for me. I felt that the themes of racism within the publishing industry got lost in the overall mess and over the top-ness of it all. Although it’s meant to be satire, I somewhat struggle to accept it as one - it wasn’t particularly funny, more so cringy. While I found the premise interesting, I sadly did not enjoy the execution.

While reading this book, I felt like RF Kuang kept remembering this and that drama on Twitter and thinking ‘that’d be a great addition to my book,’ and kept the circle going. This is 350 pages long, and honestly I think this story could have been told in about 200-250 pages. Yellowface is meant to be read in one sitting, but it’s a bit repetitive for me to be able to do that. And honestly, if I wanted to read Twitter drama (which I don’t), then I can just log on to Twitter… that is perhaps the most disappointing thing about Yellowface, not getting the more serious side of Kuang’s writing prowess, and not delving deep into characters, plots, and themes.

In the future, I won’t hesitate to pick up Kuang’s fantasy novels if she does return to them. However, I might steer clear of her contemporary stuff, as it doesn’t seem to click with me. While I think Yellowface will age quickly and poorly, this book will be fun for people who enjoy fast reads and want to feel like they’re getting some insights into the publishing/authorship industry, and get a side of booktwitter discourse all at once.

Ooof.

Was super excited to read this book after reading babbel.

Ms. Kuang, did not come to disappoint.
A story surrounding someone who is essentially a culture culture, and profits from exploiting someone else’s heritage.

Both Athen and June were terrible. Definitely had a weird symbiotic-ish relationship. Athena definitely got an ego boost.
A good read to get out of a reading slump

For weeks after reading Yellowface, the only thing I was able to verbalize to my book-loving friends was - MIND. BLOWN. I needed to sit in my feelings and digest many different aspects of this story. This was a deceivingly quick but deeply uncomfortable and multilayered read that left me thinking - is there any writing style/genre exploration Kuang won't dare try (and incidentally completely CRUSH)? Additionally my first impression was a certainty that yes, without a doubt this book will be popular and successful but beyond that it will polarizing and most definitely talked about.

When she witnesses her super successful writer friend Athena Liu die, Juniper Song's first instinct is to grab her unpublished manuscript about unacknowledged roles of Chinese laborers in WW1. What follows is Juniper's journey of trying to hide her secret while navigating newfound literary success which comes at a cost.

Though the story is full of unlikable characters and deeply uncomfortable topics, on occasion I still found myself (quite involuntarily and pretty sure as a result of a skilful literary manipulation) rooting for Juniper not to get caught. Gasp. One of my favorite things about R.F. Kuang's writing is that she doesn't dumb things down for her reader. She just leaves you to ponder seemingly endless number of complex topics. Not just about identity, race and representations but who decides what is appropriate, in literary world, in (social) media and in life in general. These intricacies really resonated with me because it's quite similar in the world of social justice - not only are we constantly attempting to challenge and change the existing system but there is also an internal system of "rating" and judgment of what and how you are supposed to be.

This story will make many readers uncomfortable but explorations of racism and systems rooted in inequality and propped up by white supremacy are MEANT to be uncomfortable. In words of R.F Kuang "If reading it feels a bit like watching a train crash in slow motion, then I’ll have done my job." If you want a read that will take you for a loop, make your head spin and leave you thinking about it for a long, long time, then this is a book for you. I thought it was beautifully written, well thought out and truly impactful. Another one for the ALL TIME FAVORITE READS shelf.

Just a note for those who are fans of Babel and The Poppy War trilogy - this book is a completely different beast, so keep that in mind when diving in.

Immensely grateful to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK/The Borough Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was SUPER fun to read and must have been extremely fun to write. Deliciously bitchy while also really smart. I like how the book is complex and nuanced - Athena is not a flawless character. Overall, this would be a great book for book club discussion - it's easily readable in a day.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.