Zingy, poignant, and razor sharp.

'Yellowface' is a masterfully written exploration of racism in the publishing industry and the commercialization of identity, scrutinizing the performance of literary critique in online spaces and the unique horrors of truth-bending sensationalism along the way.

The story was absolutely wild and unhinged, and it was all the better for it. If you like stories narrated by villains, this is the book for you.

It was uncomfortable and upsetting to read. I was cringing every other paragraph with disgust and frustration over the narrator, author Juniper Hayward, who couldn't go one single scene without expressing some sort of racist thought, comment, or action. Gaslighting and mental gymnastics were her forte. It's amazing how far she went to avoid accountability for her misguided views and actions. Though, diving deeper into the story reveals there wasn't a single likable or redeemable character. June was backed by a similarly racist publishing team, and attacked viciously online to a point of hysteria. Every character we meet was motivated by goals fraught with desperation and self-interest. That being said, every turn of the plot felt unsettlingly real.

I honestly threw my phone across my couch by the end.

BUT MAKE NO MISTAKE- every nuanced negativity was crafted with intention to make a point, and R F Kuang more than succeeded in her commentarial aim. For that, her work deserves these five stars. 'Yellowface' is brilliantly infuriating, and the questions it begs the reader to contemplate are worth your time.

I won't be forgetting or getting over Athena Liu's ghost any time soon. This book is one that will surely haunt me for a long time to come.

(This review is based on an e-ARC I received.)

R.F. Kuang's Yellowface is all in all, a very fun book. It's about white writer June Hayward who's in shadow of her superstar former Yale classmate, Athena Liu. When Athena chokes to death on a pandan pancake, June steals her manuscript, edits it, and peddles it off as her own. Chaos ensues.

As someone terminally on writing twitter, Kuang has exactly diagnosed how its boom and bust cycles work. I had a few issues with the text--(spoilers)

I could spot who the 'ghost Athena' was from a mile away; the twitter wars portion of the book felt overlong; the writing felt defensive on Kuang's part at times (as was aptly pointed out in several other NG reviews); the clueless whiteness of June was at times overlabored.

All in all, I found Yellowface to be a flawed but fun read. I'm suitably terrified of publishing now lol.

RF Kuang is back with another show stopping novel that is sure to chart all the top lists of the year 2023. I was very interested to read the premises of this book as it didn't match the Fantasy aesthetics of her previous novel. I did not doubt RF Kunag would write an insightful novel that is strong in her beliefs which exemplify social injustices. The characters in YELLOWFACE truly fell off the page and I could not put this book down until I had finished it. I hope Kuang continues to write more books like this one, but I am excited to read whatever she puts out next regardless!

"Yellowface" is the perfect novel for people who hate "American Dirt," but loved the "American Dirt" controversy. Unlike Kuang's previous works of historical fantasy, "Yellowface" is as contemporary as it gets. The novel follows June Hayward, a mediocre white author who steals the manuscript of her friend—the Chinese-American literary darling Athena Liu. "Yellowface" masterfully explores questions of race, ownership, and cancel culture, with Kuang's astute insight into the topics delivered through biting satire. While potentially too inside baseball for the casual reader, for anyone working in the book industry, "Yellowface" will be an absolute treat. Razor-sharp and captivating, "Yellowface" proves Kuang is can tackle any genre.

Wow!! This books was amazing! I literally could not put it down and read it one day! This is was first book by R.F. Kuang and I am definitely eager to read more by her. This is the kind of book where every character is extremely unlikable especially the main character which I’m usually not a fan of but it really worked in this book. All the commentary on racism, the publishing and book industry and social media as a whole were brilliant! I really loved this novel and can’t wait to recommend to everyone!

This is much different than R.F. Kuang's other works - still similar themes, but the writing style is more "poppy," so to speak. A searing take on the publishing industry. Loved all the DC references.

What an unlikeable narrator! This book will definitely be popular with book clubs and other groups that like to discuss books. BTW, there's also an unrelated play with this title by David Henry Hwang

Phenomenal! Different from R. F. Kuang's previous works, but it was, as always, a delight. I loved the writing and the message behind the story. I can tell this will be this year's hit book.

Kuang takes on the publishing industry, diversity, and cultural appropriation in this dark satire. Told through the first-person narration of Juniper Song, the white woman who is going to publisher her dead friend's book on Chinese laborers in WWI, this novel twists and turns while asking the question "are there stories that only certain people can tell?" If you liked The Other Black Girl, you'll love this meta pageturner!

This. Book.

This is my first read of R.F. Kuang's, and it's clear that I've been missing out. I quite literally could not put this book down. Athena and Juniper were both such incredibly compelling characters, and the way that Kuang portrayed the influences of writing and publishing on their "friendship" even after Athena's death was enchanting. On top of heavy commentary on racism in publishing, Kuang also illustrates how fickle and even terrifying the world of social media can be for authors.
YELLOWFACE is a must-read for bookish people and especially for writers and those in the publishing industry. Being in Juniper's head as a young white women desperate to make it big in the publishing world is packed with nuance, creating a narrative both engrossing and terrifying.

Yellowface was a book I couldn't put down. I finished it in a day and was engrossed in the story the entire time. The characters are complex and interesting and I enjoyed reading a story where I wasn't rooting for the protagonist to win. R. F. Kuang does it again with an amazing and complex story. I absolutely loved it.

It's R.F. Kuang, need I say more? R.F. Kuang's first non-fantasy book is everything and nothing like I would have expected. Her prose stands strong while dealing with race-baiting and bringing a bit of dark humour into the story.

As someone who spent years fully entrenched in the online book "community" I had so much fun reading YELLOWFACE. For me, the satire was spot-on and, I thought, pointed out the ridiculousness, self-righteousness, and sheer cringe that can happen on both sides whenever lit-related drama rears its ugly head, often to the detriment of important conversations about race, gender, etc. Which is often. While I do think this novel was written for a very specific subset of people (anyone who hasn't been involved in book social media between say 2016 to present will probably have no clue what is going on in this book) it is sure to make anyone who *has* been very online at any point shudder in recognition. I did have a few issues with the pacing, and all the edge-of-your-seat wondering if June will be found out fades as the middle section goes on too long. The ending will not satisfy everyone, but I did appreciate that the author chose to acknowledge that the book drama will never truly end. A smart, thought-provoking, entertaining take on modern publishing and social media.

I had a very hard time figuring out who this book is “for.” White ally audiences? The incredibly small set of published fiction authors under 50? POC who want to scream about how they already know how hard it is?

I got approved for this the day I had reread Molly Young’s NYT book review ( https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/19/books/review-last-resort-andrew-lipstein.html ) of “Last Resort” and “The Plot,” calling them, “anti-Künstlerroman — books not about the formation of genuine artists but about the self-destruction of phony ones. They are both thrillers about, of all things, intellectual property.”

Molly Young also goes on about how “Last Resort” and “The Plot” share a “similar … plot.” Which is now shared by “Yellowface” a year later. By now readers have come to understand the publishing world, making this a little less Inside Baseball than it might have been 5 years ago.

I just never felt that Yellowface found the right tone. Writing from the perspective of the culture-vulture seemed like it would soothe white ally audiences and rile POC ones. That perspective felt unctuous and underhanded, not sly or satirical.

Writing: 5/5 Characters: 4/5 Plot: 4.5/5

This book never goes where you expect it to go. Ostensibly the story of an author (Juniper Song) who takes the latest manuscript from a recently deceased friend (Athena Liu), completes it, and publishes it as her own. But the depth of introspection, thought, and reaction every step of the way neatly details the complexities of every aspect of the world of writing, publishing, marketing and fandom. And it is absolutely fascinating.

Ever noticed how easy it is to have a (strong) opinion on something for which you’ve only read a headline? You’re not the only one. This book forces us to think a lot more deeply about a whole slew of issues: What is plagiarism vs influence vs mashups? How are we influenced by both direct marketing / branding and the more subtle (but equally insistent) influence of current trends and fads? How quick are we to leap to conclusions without analysis or an attempt at understanding?

Kuang also tackles the hydra of cultural appropriation by having her narrator (a white woman) writing a (thoroughly researched) book about Chinese history. Does she have the right to write about something that is not her heritage? Is it more reasonable for someone who is of Chinese descent but has never experienced (or been exposed to) anything like the characters in the book to write it? Kuang (who herself is ethnically Chinese) presents multiple sides to a whole slew of issues via the opinions, thoughts, and comments of various characters — both fully fleshed out and spewed in every angry storm of social media commentary. If Kuang herself has a strong opinion on these topics, she keeps it well camouflaged through her characters’ many disparate voices. I think she showed real courage tackling the subjects — helpful that she is already an award winning author — but I hope the strong-minded Internet trolls bother to think things through before attacking!

Lots of literary references, real insight into the industry, and a wildly convoluted plot that is actually clean, believable, and easy to follow. Human nature presented with all of its intricate folds dancing about in the intersection of morality, social acceptability, and judgement. Very different from her last book (Babel — which I loved) — it is equally compelling.

A fantastic first line, which drew me in instantly: “The night I watch Athena Liu die, we’re celebrating her TV deal with Netflix.” A fantastic last line, too, but I won’t include that here!

A small selection of good lines — there are so, so many:
“I stare at Athena’s brown eyes, framed by those ridiculously large lashes that make her resemble a Disney forest animal, and I wonder, What is it like to be you?”

“Cue the myth making in real time, the constructed persona deemed maximally marketable by her publishing team, paired with a healthy dose of neoliberal exploitations. Complex messages reduced to sound bites; biographies cherry-picked for the quirky and exotic.”

“The Last Front hardly breaks new ground; instead, it joins novels like The Help and The Good Earth in a long line of what I dub historical exploitation novels: inauthentic stories that use troubled pasts as an entertaining set piece for white entertainment.”

“In any case, Twitter discourse never does anything — it’s just an opportunity for firebrands to wave their flags, declare their sides, and try to brandish some IQ points before everyone gets bored and moves on.”

“It’s hard to reach such a pinnacle of literary prominence that you remain a household name for years, decades past your latest release. Only a handful of Nobel Prize winners can get away with that. The rest of us have to keep racing along the hamster wheel of relevance.”

“But enter professional publishing and suddenly writing is a matter of professional jealousies, obscure marketing budgets, and advances that don’t measure up to those of your peers. Editors go in and mess around with your words, your vision. Marketing and publicity make you distill hundreds of pages of careful, nuanced reflection into cute, tweet-size talking points. Readers inflict their own expectations, not just on the story, but on your politics, your philosophy, your stance on all things ethical. You, not your writing, become the product — your looks, your wit, your quippy clapbacks and factional alignments with online beefs that no one in the real world gives a shit about.”

I am once again blown away by R. F. Kuang's writing. I devoured this book. I'm amazed at how well she transitioned into the literary fiction genre (although I didn't doubt she would do it spectacularly, I'm just in awe of how flawlessly she did it).

*I'm coming back to this well after finishing it and this is still at the forefront of my mind. Kuang has seamlessly crafted a main character who is unlikable, and yet, I cared to hear what happens. I would generally turn away from a book that has no likable main characters.

Truthfully, I didn't finish reading this book. I got to about the hook and decided to put it down as soon as I saw where it was going. When (Spoiler) the friend dies, immediately the entire book became obvious. I can't put much of a say on the race issue, as it isn't my place, but the book itself doesn't read well and was painful to get through all the cringing. It might change in the end, and be better, but for now I will say I have no plans of adding it to my collection. Thank you for the opportunity to read it, and I'm sure that others will have differing opinions if they get further through than I did. Unfortunately, it just won't fit in with our collection.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. This book is about June Hayward/Juniper Song, an aspiring author whose debut novel has recently bombed, and her insanely successful friend, sometimes frenemy, Athena Liu. When Athena dies in a sudden accident, June takes the manuscript Athena has just finished, reworks it, and passes it off as her own. It's a premise that I've seen in other books recently, but in Yellowface there's an added layer exploring race and identity. I find the business of the book industry really fascinating and Yellowface doesn't shy away from criticizing it. I can see this book inspiring a lot of questions like Whose stories deserve to get told? and Who has the right to tell them?

I loved everything about this book. R.F. Kuang has a gift.

I know this book is going to make so many people upset, but I loved every single page of it.

I tore through this book really quickly. I'm a sucker for characters who get what coming to them, and this book was not a disappointment. What I didn't expect was that there was no tidy resolution. June's act of literary appropriation is discovered and interrogated, but the resolution is anything but tidy. I'm being vague to avoid spoilers, but this is a messy book, with messy characters and a messy resolution. So much of the drama unfolds online (which is probably par for the course with authors these days), which one of June's editors lambasts and says that most readers won't care, authors are all too online. I was left with a melancholy feeling at the end, when it was clear that none of the characters were willing to break free of the spiral that their actions brought on.