This was the absolute cutest. Totally recommend.
I was a bit reluctant because all the reviews I'd read had been so good that I feared my expectations wouldn't be met, but this didn't disappoint in the least. I absolutely loved it.

Review shared on Amazon, Goodreads and Joyfully Jay Reviews: http://joyfullyjay.com/2017/09/review-antisocial-by-heidi-cullinan/

Xander Fairchild is a senior art student at Benten College and seriously mad. His sophomore year art mural was defaced by a couple of pledges to Delta Sig, a fraternity on campus. Xander makes no habit of socializing with people in general, and he’s not happy about the golden boy of Delta Sig, Skylar Stone, trying to make reparations that would be suitable to Xander. There is no acceptable repair, to Xander’s mind, and he wants nothing to do with all that mess, fraternities, or Skylar.

Skylar isn’t satisfied unless he’s pleased everyone, including his generally disapproving father, his ambitious mother, or the administration at Benten College. When Xander says he’d rather have his art destroyed than repaired, Skylar’s confused why his charm isn’t working. And, he’s captivated by both Xander and his art, which leans toward a Japanese style. In fact, it’s very much informed by Japanese manga, which is a style of story art we’d called comic book. Xander writes the campus manga, which, because there’s a lot of Japanese influence in this college’s history and founding, is a story of adventure and enlightenment and has Buddhist and Japanese themes.

Xander is an out, gay man who’s never had a boyfriend, because that would mean he had to get emotionally and physically close to someone. His closest…friend…is a genderfluid character named Zelda. This makes Xander a bit nervous, because his senior project isn’t only about his art, it’s about him advertising his show, and building an online platform to promote his “brand.” Skylar, on the other hand, dates all the beautiful people, but connects with none of them. As a business major, he’s very much capable at networking online and IRL. As a way to not only make good with Xander, but to also get close to him and his art, Skylar offers to make advertising Xander’s show a part of his senior project. It’s an offer that Xander’s advisor will not allow him to refuse.

challenge month 2017 copyIt’s hard for Xander not to be sucked into Skylar’s golden glow, but the closer he gets, the more he sees the shiny veneer that Skylar wears to keep everyone at a distance. They build a rapport that is initially founded on their mutual love of manga—and grows as each of them feels more comfortable to be more vulnerable. Xander discusses the apathy of his family, and Skylar reveals he’s not really sure about his sexuality. That he’s a gray-asexual, and it scares Skylar, who thinks he’ll never find a true partner.

For these two, the intimacy is mostly emotion based. I’m no expert on the spectrum of gray-asexual arousal. I’ve read several of these type of books; I’ve found them compelling for their emotional complexity, not their intimate moments. Skylar and Xander are able to find a level of intimacy that suits them and involves some aspects of touching, nudity, and occasional kissing. Their bond is heart oriented, and they support one another without reservation. As Skylar begins to pull away from the demands of his indifferent family, he cleaves to Xander. And Xander is unwilling to accept the scraps of interest he gets from his mother, filtered through his stepfather’s disgust. So, they make a family for themselves, including Zelda and a couple of other comrades, along with the quirky professor emeritus who owns the home where Xander rents an upstairs apartment. They have a deep connection to the Japanese influence of the college, which may be culture-appropriating, but I have many friends who absolutely adore manga, and that has acted as a gateway to further appreciation of Japanese culture. That’s a bit what I experienced in reading this book.

I loved how their support, as a couple and as a group, enabled this collected family to have a far better experience in college and life than was possible before. The end is a happy place, and Xander is far less antisocial by the end, than he was in the beginning.

I chose this book for our Judge a Book By Its Cover Week because the cover is amazing. It’s a manga of Xander (the dark haired one) and Skylar, the well-dressed golden boy dazzled by the cherry blossom petals. I absolutely love it, and the art fits the book so perfectly. It’s young and bright and playful, and that’s how Xander and Skylar are, once they commit to being friends and eventual partners.

I generally don’t get into contemporary romances (I read this one because I’ve been meaning to try Ms Cullinan’s work and I needed it for a reading challenge) but that’s not entirely why this didn’t fully work for me.

Xander Fairchild is the titular antisocial character, a talented artist who is staring at not getting his degree and/or getting into a master’s program because he has to put on a show of his work and that includes doing the promotion and marketing and the social media side. He has not much in the way of friends other than the asexual, aromantic Zelda and a few people on the school’s manga production team (Benten university dates back to the days when places like Japan were romanticized and copied) and Pamela former professor and his landlord.

After some frat boys ruined a mural of Xander’s by painting penises on it, Skylar Stone, a frat officer tries to make it up to him but the mural can’t be saved and all Xander wants is to be left alone. Skylar bemuses him by loving one of Xander’s oils and tries to buy it. Before long their fates are intertwined. Skylar, as part of his pre-law/business degree, has to make a marketing portfolio so makes Xander his project whether or not Xander likes it.

I did like the first half with the exception of Zelda who is so judgmental and non-supportive I wouldn’t see how Xander thought they were his friend. Zelda gets better in the second half but I do find myself agreeing that it felt long and a bit too Japanese oriented and that’s coming from someone who’s been watching manga/anime for over forty years. (Though I agree with Unc and Xander that <i>Fullmetal Alchemist</i> is one of the best manga ever written).

The irony for me here, is that I’m not a fan of insta-love and would like to see a slower unfolding. That’s what I get here and it felt just that: slow. A caveat here, I’m not ACE though I do agree with the in text observation is that there is no one way to be Asexual (or gay or het for that matter). I felt bogged down in Skylar’s angst over his sexuality and his and Xander’s attempts to work around it, thru it, however you want to look at it. My interest began to flag. It wasn’t helped that uber-rich Skylar’s family life felt a little too paint by the numbers rich, disinterested parents out to control their child’s every breath (and it played out just as it almost always does).

I can say there are reasons I prefer to read paranormal or mystery or sci-fi romance over contemporary and this reminded me of why. Even with something I love (manga/anime) this took me forever to get through. It’s not the writing in that case. It’s me. I did, however, love that cover.

This is a romance between two guys in college trying to figure out who they are and what their future will be. Both have issues with their parents and struggle with career choices. Both guys are virgins. One isn't sure what his sexuality is and doesn't quite want to label it for certain. It doesn't contain actual sex, but there are some really erotic moments. One is an artist so some fun with art comes into play. Mostly this is about a diverse group of friends supporting each other and enjoying mutual loves like manga and anything Japanese. Antisocial is a sweet romance with lots of openness and diversity. I'd like to see it turned into an anime.

Tried to read - could not. Netgalley makes me rate a book, even if its a DNF- this review should not be counted in the full rating.

While I normally love Heidi Cullinan's work, this one really didni't work at all for me. I had a lot of problems with fetishizing Japanese culture. It starts off strong but peters out in the end. I had difficulty finishing it and maybe it was just too long. The focus on the relationship didn't stand strong throughout the entire book and I just felt exhausted when finished.

It was just not for me but I'm very much looking forward to more books from Cullinan in the future.

This is going to be more of a thought dump than a review probably but it’s hard to collect my thoughts in a way that makes sense. It's getting a rating in the middle since I did have some issues with the story but overall I liked it. I've started moving away from the younger books - kids in high school or college - because of my age. Because there was really no sex in the story, that helped me get through it.

First, I’m going to get the disclaimers out of the way.
1. I’m heterosexual.
2. I don’t have any first or second hand direct knowledge of or experience with the ace spectrum.
3. I don’t read manga or watch anime and my knowledge of Japanese culture is limited at best.
4. I am 100% unapologetically honest with my reviews. I NEVER read reviews of books before reading the book for two reasons 1) I don’t want to have a bias going into the book and 2) I find that not everyone is completely honest in their reviews so I usually don’t agree with the reviews I’ve read.

I will also tell you that I struggled with reading this and when given the opportunity to switch to the audiobook, I took it and found myself unable to finish quickly enough. I am a VERY picky audiobook listener…and can tell you that there is ONE series I would rather listen to than read and I’m a fan of maybe 3 vocal performers and can possibly name another 3 if pressed. The vocal performance was SPOT ON and he was perfect as the characters of this book. It helped with the pronunciation of the Japanese words and made the flow of the story smoother for me. It’s rare that I prefer audio over reading but in this case I did.

I didn’t find their fetish for Japanese culture off-putting…even considering there are no Japanese characters in the story. I put it in the same box with all other fetishes – ‘to each his own’ and whatever works for you has no effect on my opinion of the story unless it’s something I just cannot read about. Some of it was boring and I didn’t care about it but I found listening to the book made it easier to get past.

As for the representation of the spectrum characters, I can’t tell you if it was offensive or harmful as I don’t know much about those orientations. I can’t put myself in their shoes. Yes, it was fairy-tale like and unusual for someone not on the spectrum – Xander – to quickly know how to be in a relationship with someone on the spectrum – Skylar – but this is fiction and for me it worked. I thought they were great together and I loved how they balanced each other. They were able to bring out the best in each other and get the other to be comfortable being and with themselves.

There are a lot of things in this story that just worked out perfectly for the characters and the story itself. Again, I didn’t find this off-putting as a lot of the books I read are usually ‘too good to be true’ or happen perfectly to end in everyone being happy. That’s the point of fiction – it ain’t real. I was really surprised at the turn of the story. The story starts with the reader believing Xander is the center of the story and the character that will go through the most change. It's actually Skylar with most of the struggles and going through the most change in the story. Xander is actually pretty well-adjusted in his antisocial grumpiness.

As I stated in my reviews of this author’s Roosevelt series books, she is preachy to the point of soapboxy about events/themes in her books. None of that bothered me enough to give this book or those books a bad rating even though I skimmed through a lot of it (that was hard to do with this book once I switched to audio).

This book isn’t for everyone any way so I would read all the reviews and make a decision on whether or not to read it after doing that.

Antisocial by Heidi Cullinan

OK, I admit it, I wanted to read this one based on the cover alone, though I've read and enjoyed some of the author's previous works too. I’m not an otaku, but I have been interested in Japanese animation since the days when shows were often tweaked or reworked for an American audience back in the 1970s and 80s.

I still read manga and watch anime now and again, so the idea of fictional Benton College being a place with a heavy Japanese influence was interesting. I’m a librarian who works with teens who would love that idea. I know some reviewers have issues with this being a fetishization of the culture, but for many American otakus, that's what they do. It's just in the “excessively devoted or obsessed” meaning of the word, not a sexual thing (though I'm sure there's a lot of that too).

The background of the college’s founding was a bit sketchy (in the not-filled in sense of the word), but the reality was the founders couldn’t do exactly what they wanted with an even more intensive Japanese-style experience and have any chance of success in America, so the college is mostly mainstream with Japanese touches left from their original vision. There are language courses and hidden shrines, but honestly, there’s not really that much of the culture left other than it being something most of the characters are interested in and connect over. The only actual Japanese person that I recall is the dead husband of a white woman, and they’d both been professors at the college.

Xander is the antisocial one of the title, because his coming out was not an easy one. He has a limited number of people he’ll allow in his orbit, but even then he doesn’t consider them friends. Along comes Skyler, as the rep from his Greek house trying to smooth things over after some of his frat brothers destroy one of Xander's murals. Skyler is intrigued by Xander, while Xander sees the real Skyler beneath the veneer of what his family expects him to be. Skylar offers his help in promoting Xander's BFA project, because Xander has no social network – real or virtual – and it's a requirement to promote on social media.

There’s some interesting choices by having ace and genderfluid characters. Even people who consider themselves in one of those categories may not agree on whether it is good representation, mainly because everyone's personal experience is different, so their expectations are as well. I do give the author credit for trying, and hopefully getting some people to expand their thinking about the sexuality and gender spectrums. This book may not hold the answers, but if more authors try to represent non-cisgender characters, I think we’ll see a wider variety on the spectrum written in a respectful way.

Even though I read manga and watch anime, I do admit sometimes feeling lost with the references because I only have a mild interest and only vaguely recognized some of the titles the characters are talking about. The author has to tread a fine line between annoying fans who don’t need an explanation, and those who are lost because there isn’t one. I think it's a little bit like fanfiction (not a bad thing) in which you have to already have some knowledge to truly get the full experience.

Overall, I enjoyed the story, but I think it could have been tightened up a bit in the latter half. I do like a cranky hero who has a reason to be that way, with the other hero chipping away at that hardened shell, not realizing his own protective shell is cracking too. I really liked the “sweet” nature of the story, which normally doesn’t appeal to me, but I do understand issues about cultural appropriation and gender/orientation representation may be huge non-starters for others.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have read reviews from several asexual people who have shared that the book has harmful depiction of asexuality. Because I am asexual myself, I have decided not to read this book as to not expose myself to harmful representation. In the future, I recommend looking into hiring sensitivity readers to ensure that representation is as accurate and harm-free as possible.

As other readers have said, the Japanese element of this book is uncomfortable and should be a plus for me but was actually a minus as it was handled in a really awkward way with no actual Japanese characters. The concept of the school and the asexual representation made it sound a lot more interesting than it actually was, sorry.

Great book about the love story of two student boys. It was easy and fun to go through the story. The author did a great job describing everything that it's possible to feel everything mentioned in the book. So much detail in everything lo9ved artsy bits and pieces and of course all Japan related stuff was great. Enjoyed happy ending. I liked that it was more sensual than sexualized. Really recommend.

As a fan of anime and manga I was obviously drawn to that cover. Then I stayed for the summary, which looked at the very least promising.

Xander is not good at socialising, but he doesn't really care –he prefers it that way. On the other hand, Skylar is the best at that: forming connections, being liked by everybody. Their paths cross when Xander's mural is vandalised and Skylar is responsible for making amends. In the end they are 'forced' to spend time together since they can help each other with their final projects.

They start to know each other, really know each other in a way no one else seems to know any of them, and they grow closer and closer as they do. Their relationship doesn't go the same way as others might though; Skylar belongs to the asexual spectrum, somewhere on the gray area.

I'm not in the asexual spectrum so my point of view may be blind to some aspects but I think this book treated everything with so much respect and love that I was half-crying at some points who were lovely instead of the hardest ones –where I was mostly filled with rage. But Xander and Skylar's relationship is so pure and beautiful you can focus on that instead of the ugly parts.

Trigger warnings: bullying, some uncomfortable or triggering moments for asexual people, homophobia

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆☆
This is a beautiful new adult story about two young men attempting to grow into their adult selves. At the start of this book, Skylar and Xander exist on opposite sides of university student life. While Xander is reclusive, angry, and obsessed with his art, Skylar hides in plain view behind his money, his fraternity and his perfect smile. When Skylar and Xander meet, they are surprised by the interests they share and the friendship that develops.

This is a book about perception and reality, the conflict between passion and duty, and a story about the power of relationships that don’t conform to social expectations. With at least one of the main characters identifying on the ace or grey-ace spectrum, this story sensitively explores romance without typical sexual intimacy. With such heavy themes and ideas, this should have been a dark, difficult book – but it really isn’t. Something about the cast of new adult characters makes this a hopeful, happy book. These kids still have time to change their futures and to grow into the best versions of themselves.

The romance between Skylar and Xander builds very slowly. It takes time for Skylar to even win Xander’s friendship. Xander is a private person who doesn’t trust easily. Interestingly, Skylar ends up having more secrets than Xander does. Instead of the buildup sexual tension we’ve come to expect in romance writing, Xander and Skylar’s relationship builds on their cerebral connection, their shared passions, and their shared confidences. At times, this relationship felt much more intimate than a typical sexual relationship.

The Japanese culture, language, and art in this story had me conflicted. On one hand, the manga in this book is something that brings Xander, Skylar, and their friends together and it provides Xander and Skylar with a shared focus. On the other hand, the obsession with all things Japanese is a little bit odd. The shared interest reinforces the students’ outsider status but I did get lost at times in long passages about gods and characters I didn’t quite understand.

I have read and loved so many different types of books by Heidi Cullinan. She is one of my favourite authors and I love the diversity in her books. This story is probably closest in style and intensity to her very special ‘Roosevelt’ books. More than a new adult romance, this is a coming of age story and Xander, Skylar, and their friends are unique and wonderfully crafted characters.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆☆
What an amazing story, major book hangover here. Such depth, such intensity, and such profound issues dealt with in a truly gentle, caring, and genuine way, mainly by the two men, but also by many of those around them. The struggle, the love, the disappointments, all described so effectively and shared with us in such well curated writing. I am not a manga fan, yet found myself writing down names to look up and research, so that I can see whether my imagination conjured up the right types of images.

Whilst this is written about college students, they are somehow so mature due to their experiences, yet so innocent in their sexuality. An incredibly arresting mix of serious and then sometimes playful – much like the description of the wave painting... the message is not what you might first imagine, and the richness comes from the attitude of the fishermen, maybe not the impact of the wave.

Give yourself plenty of time to read this book, because it is a weighty read, but I did not find a word which was unnecessary (and I am picky) in the telling of the story. This is for sure now in my special books to be reread pile, because I know I will find it even more rewarding on a second read, when I am not so desperate to know what happens next, but visiting old friends.

Thank you, Ms. Cullinan, thank you.

Okay to preface this review, I just wanted to say that I’ve seen a couple of great reviews from readers in the lgbtq+ community discussing the ace rep in the novel. And it’s come to my attention that the representation is extremely inaccurate and even harmful. As a result, I’ve decided to lower my rating, but this review will still contain my original thoughts. I will also link a few reviews that describe the problematic rep in my review.

I won’t lie, I recently got into manga and anime so I was automatically drawn in by the cover. However, I was very wary of possible cultural appropriation, so I looked up more information about the author/book and found out that one: she’s white, two: this book was apparently patreon funded, three: her dedication was to Yamamoto and Kubo (the creators of the anime Yuri on Ice). The last one was a huge red flag because that just screeches “Weeaboo” to me. But honestly, I thought I would give it the benefit of the doubt because I’m an anime fan myself so I get it, you know? But there are so many ways to show appreciation for other cultures without crossing over to the point of appropriation.

Aside from Xander’s love for manga, I was initially interested in this book because of an ace mc. I’m a huge champion of diverse novels, so I was so excited about this since I haven’t read very many books featuring a character on the gray spectrum. That being said, I feel like I can’t speak accurately about its representation so here are two reviews in particular that thoroughly discuss the problematic content:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077458714?book_show_action=true
https://bookstogetlostin.wordpress.com/2017/08/27/review-antisocial-by-heidi-cullinan/

Since I’m talking about rep, I’ll go ahead and add in my thoughts about the inclusion of Japanese culture here. I think it would’ve been alright if the main character was just fascinated in manga and wanted to pursue art as a result, but the fact that the college was “Japanese culture-soaked” yet no character was Japanese had me questioning so many things. And the random shrines and background history of the town were completely unnecessary. In fact, it was a bit weird and really didn’t add anything to the plot except to remind the readers that “hey! It’s full of Japanese culture, remember? Cool stuff!!”
Also, *sighs* the use of Japanese language. Again, I totally understand when you discover a new culture and become fascinated and want to learn its language. That’s fantastic, learning new languages is a great thing, and I’m a huge proponent of learning about different cultures. But it’s one thing to appreciate the language, and another to straight up fetishize it. There’s literally zero reason for Xander and Skylar to speak Japanese, especially just randomly in a conversation (that’s lowkey Weeaboo 101). Anyway, before I start ranting, I’m going to switch over to things I liked.

Problematic content aside, I actually liked Skylar and Xander originally and enjoyed their interactions and relationship. I thought they were really cute together. I liked the minor characters as well, especially Unc and Zelda. The overall story arc was a bit cliché but cute. I think it did contain solid themes like acceptance and self-identity. In terms of plot, I felt like the “plot twist” at the end was unnecessary. It was really added drama that didn’t need to be included in the first place. The book is already 400+ pages long which is more than usual for a romance novel. The plot didn’t really drag, but it did feel noticeably long (as in I felt like I had been reading it for a long time). I think a lot of parts could have been cut without dramatically affecting the plot.

Overall, I think that Antisocial has some bad representation which overshadows what could’ve/would’ve been a really cute contemporary romance. I think people can still read and enjoy this novel, as long as they also note the problematic content.

There are so many firsts for me with this book. Most importantly, it’s the first book I’ve read by this author…which after reading it has led me to berate myself for not reading her before this even though I have several of her books waiting for me on my e-reader. Needless to say, all of her work has just shot up to the very top of my TBR list…after all, Antisocial has just become my absolute favorite book of 2017 (which, hey-spoiler-means 5 stars and a Top Recommendation in case you're wondering).

Another first—I’ve never been into manga or anime or really anything like that, though I’ve long admired Japanese art in general, and this is the first book I’ve read that concentrates so heavily on these aspects. I found myself intrigued enough to start looking into the culture on my own. I know there are elements that are idealized/romanticized and not necessarily true to everyday life, but just the idea of the cultural aspects presented is soothing and put me in a very positive headspace.

A rather interesting and unexpected first…reading a new adult romance where there’s absolutely no sex. I love sex in romance books because when it is not overused it can be an emotional and provocative way to advance the intimacy between the characters—and I mean relationship-wise, not just sex-wise. Here in Antisocial, the first “intimate” encounter between Xander and Skylar is done with their hands, and it was more sensual than a lot of regular sex scenes I’ve read, distinctly more emotional, and actually almost erotic—without a single piece of clothing coming off. There’s more to sex than intercourse, and it’s passages like this that show this is an undeniable fact.

There’s a lot of symbolism; this story is very much Skylar's journey from the fake, plastic person he pretended to be to who he really is-which is not something he knew when Xander first met him. Skylar was whatever everyone else wanted him to be and who he truly was...that person was lost inside him and Xander helped bring him out. Self-discovery at its very best, and I personally found Skylar’s journey incredibly moving. I became thoroughly absorbed in this book, even more so after the first touch scene between Xander and Skylar. 

The story may seem long and drawn out to some readers, but the way it is told is necessary to really uncover the root of Skylar's torment and help him become who he really wants to be. It is descriptive and really helps the reader feel how the characters feel. If you are the type of reader who appreciates a deeper meaning in a story, not just for the characters but for you personally, Antisocial is definitely one that should be on your must-read list. And the amazing characters—main and supporting—who all had so much depth and meaning, they continued to pull me further and further into the Antisocial world with every page.

Five stars is not anywhere near enough for Antisocial, this story has clearly earned the top spot of all the books I’ve read so far in 2017 (and that’s just over two hundred so far), and is now sitting atop my Top Recommendations list for the genre.

No rating, DNF. I picked up the book because of the cover and the ace characters. I have read a few of Cullinan's books and usually enjoy them. But...cultural fetishization and some problematic ace rep did not work for me. I pulled the plug before 50% and don't plan to finish it.

This was a very touching story.

I couldn't believe that Antisocial is the first book I've read by Heidi Cullinan. I actually have several of her books on my ereader – I just haven't made time to read them yet. I met Heidi at the RWA charity book signing in Orlando in July 2017 and purchased a paperback copy of Antisocial for my keeper shelf. At the time, I didn't know that the digital copy was available for review on NetGalley. When I saw the book there I snapped it up so I wouldn't have to read the paperback and can instead keep it in pristine condition for my signed book collection.

I absolutely loved this book. The story centers around two seniors in college who very gradually build a relationship with each other. Skyler, a business major, is helping Xander, an art student, market his senior project/art show. I read a lot of M/M books but this one was very different from anything else I've ever read and it was wonderful to read.

This story really has no sex in it (unusual for an M/M story) but it is a beautiful love story and a story of two young men discovering themselves and figuring out how they can stay true to what they want and not what everyone else expects of them. It's a powerful story of friendship and love and I'm so happy I read it.

I read a lot of books so it's takes something special to stick with me long term – this is a "sticky" book for me. Thank you for writing such a wonderful story Ms. Cullinan.

I saw the cover that makes the guys look like manga characters & I ignored that sign. I should have known better. But I wanted to give this book a benefit of a doubt because there were so many positive reviews! So many people loved the romance! So I thought "hey, maybe that cover will make sense in the end". It doesn’t. It only gets worse from there.

It gets so bad I actually stopped reading at 65% because I just couldn’t take it anymore.

I probably would be able to overlook all the other flaws I found in this one if it wasn’t for my biggest issue - the fetishisation of Japanese culture. The main point of this book, the thing that it couldn’t exist without at all are indeed the references to Japanese culture. It’s everywhere: in the setting, in the way the characters interact, in the plotlines. It’s rooted in the book so deeply, it would fall apart without it. So this is a story about students at a made-up college but the catch is - it’s a college founded by a Japanese culture “admirers”. The town’s name is fictional - Takaketo - and don’t quote me on this but I’m pretty sure it doesn’t actually mean anything. It just vaguely sounds Japanese. There are hidden shrines on campus! The uni publishes a manga that our main character draws! (A manga drawn by an American, in America… So not actually a manga at all.) Both Xander & Skylar love manga and anime and have some interest in Japanese culture but it’s extremely superficial. There are no Japanese characters! The only one was a late husband of Xander’s landlady and she, an American, is the one “teaching” about the culture she so clearly knows everything about. Listen, I say this from a perspective of a white woman who is interested in Japan, took classes on some aspects of its culture and history at uni, studied Japanese for a few years - and even from where I’m standing, this is just gross. They pick and choose from the culture as it pleases them. Xander & Skylar randomly speak Japanese in times of distress or as some kind of romantic gesture but keep in mind only Xander ever took any Japanese lessons. And they don’t have whole conversation in another language, no, they just tuck in a word or two at the end of their very english sentences. Or just use Japanese to say “I’m sorry” because what? It’s more meaningful that way? They also think of their relationship in terms of anime a lot which is just honestly weird. It’s straight up fetishisation and even as someone with very little ties to Japan, it made me uncomfortable.

Listen, you wanna write a book appreciating Japanese culture? Make your main characters Japanese, set the whole thing in Japan, find literally any reason other than “it’s kinda cute”. But making your character say things like “Arakawa-sensei”? Not the way. God, even if this was a Japanese book, sensei would be translated into English! Another country’s culture is not a prop to make your story more interesting! There are teens on the internet, first discovering anime, who behave this way & I can excuse them, based on their age, but an adult, a published author? A big fat no from me.

There’s also the fact of asexuality being one of the most important themes of the book. One of our main characters is a gray ace and the book is pretty much his journey to become comfortable with himself. It ticked me the wrong way a lot of the time but personally I’m nowhere on the spectrum so I’d rather not give opinions. There are a few reviews by actual members of the community so check those out instead! What I will say though is that Xander hears this voice in his head. A voice that tells him how to handle Skylar, how to act around him and it’s the opposite of what his desires and instinct tell him. Still, his friend Zelda actually calls this voice an instinct. What I would call it is some fucked up “ace superpower”. Because of course Xander can’t be anything less than the knight in shining armor, accepting Skylar as he is, demanding nothing & basically being a gift from heaven. The only one on earth.

You worry that both main characters are white? Don’t fret! There is a chronically ill Latina who is in maybe 3 scenes & a poor black guy who chose this uni because he saw Obama speak at campus. Two whole poc that are basically just names and a lousy story. Now doesn’t that make you feel better about the representation!

Onto the less important stuff!! If this was a fic, I wouldn’t have read more than a few paragraphs. You know how with fics you just know when the writing isn’t right for you? Well this was a case of that but I kept thinking it’s a book so slightly different rules apply, maybe it will get better over time. It didn’t. The writing is just… not very good. All the descriptions are way too detailed - like, come on! I really don’t need to know he washed his bowl after eating instant ramen! - and they’re not written interestingly enough, aren’t funny or charming or surprising enough that you can overlook this. And it doesn’t get better with dialogues. If anything, it only get worse. Honestly, it feels like the author has never actually met a young person. They all speak in whole speeches and use words and phrases like "congruent" or "vastly different" or "wet dream". I mean. Seriously? They don’t act like 21-year-olds either. For the love of god, one of them admits he can’t look up manga translations online without getting a virus. And has a phone with a stylus! That he actually uses! Which brings me right to my next point.

Are you sure this book is set in 2017? Because there are references to the last presidential elections & we can’t draw any other conclusion. But then we have a smartphone with a stylus. And another character’s flip phone? Like where would he even get one?! Xander is also apparently named after Buffy’s Xander but he’s 21 years old and Buffy started airing in March of 1997 so unless this is set in the future… They also mention DeviantART which I’m pretty sure no one has used since like 2007 but okay. How hard is it to make some proper research?

This book is praised as a romance and yeah, those parts of the story are pretty okay. The two main characters are well developed and I would actually really like them in a different book. One that isn’t gross and doesn’t make me wanna punch people.

DNF at 22%. No rating on the blog/GR.

One  of the things I decided was that I would not force myself to finish a book I wasn't interested in reading anymore. My interest in Antisocial was negative 100 by the time I decided to call it quits. I don't know a nice or pretty way to say that this book is bad. Because it is.

From the first page on this fetishizes Japanese culture.

"The legend, as Xander had been told, was that in the 1870s a group of rich, eccentric friends from New York toured Asia and fell in love with Japan. They came home full of half-baked Shinto beliefs and a passion to start a Japanese revolution in the US."

There's a quote in there which actually sums it up quite nicely:

"...but mostly the college was a bunch of rich white people, a handful of people of color, and an explosion of Japanese culture that made no sense when you looked at it from the outside."

There is no Japanese character in this, except for the dead husband of one of the teachers. And that doesn't count because he has been dead for a while. Plus you don't get cookies for the token Japanese character. Apart from that all characters are white, but somehow everyone is thinks themselves to be an expert on Japan and Japanese culture. This is highly problematic.

Additional to the fetishiziation of Japanese culture we have an instance where being depressed is being compared to being antisocial. And just a page later Stockholm Syndrome is being compared to not wanting to work together on a school project. See quotes below:

"He's a gifted artists, but he's reaching Van Gogh levels of antisocial temperament."

Van Gogh wasn't antisocial, he was depressed and ended up taking his own life. Being depressed and antisocial are NOT the same thing.

"Also it was clear he was having some kind of Stockholm Syndrome over Skylar because of their forced contact due to their projects."

Those things mentioned above where the last straw for me. I had only been reading because I (as an asexual person) wanted to see what the ace-rep was like. Though judging from the things mentioned above I think I really don't want to read how the author handled the asexuality. I had enough after the first 22% and just couldn't keep reading any more of it.

If you're looking for a review that also talks about the ace rep I suggest you read Ela's review. She talks about the ace rep from an asexual point of view. Also read this review as well. There's more about what the trans/nb rep in this book, the fetishization of Japan and the ace rep are like.

Not recommended.

Instead check out Blank Spaces by Cass Lennox, Thaw by Elyse Springer, His Quiet Agent by Ada Maria Soto, All the Wrong Places by Ann Gallagher, The Executive Office series by Tal Bauer, Empty Net by Avon Gale or Concourse by Santino Hassell. All those feature ace-rep that I'd recommend you to read.

Although I think this may be one of the authors strongest books, I found it very hard to get into the story.

I love Japan, I have read hundreds of manga titles and so this book sounded perfect. I was also really glad to see more spectrum characters. I just found my interest was pulled off the page. I gave it to the 25% mark before I DNF. I think I will return but as of now, no.