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The L.O.V.E. Club
From the acclaimed author of Beating Heart Baby, an immersive novel following three estranged high schoolers who are pulled into a video game to pursue the disappearance of their friend
Three years ago, Elle (the “E” in the self-proclaimed L.O.V.E. Club) disappeared from Calendula, an affluent Chinese American suburb in inland California. Soon afterward, Liberty and Vera (“L” and “V”) moved away, leaving O alone with her grief, abandonment, and confusion. . . until Liberty and Vera return for their senior year of high school.
Though the L.O.V.E. Club’s three remaining members once bonded as outcasts and gamers, they can’t pick up the pieces of their friendship. But the girls are drawn back to their old clubhouse, where they discover, loaded for them to play, a new game created by none other than the missing Elle.
One click, and Liberty, Vera, and O are ported into Morning Glory, an ever-evolving botanical fantasy coded with their lived experiences, complicated history, and repressed insecurities. Unbeknownst to the others, O can’t remember the events surrounding Elle’s disappearance—but within the game, Elle has sent O a cryptic hint about Morning Glory’s real nature.
While Liberty and Vera defeat increasingly sinister bosses, O grapples with the secret knowledge that her deepest wish, to reunite with Elle, might just come true. But as the girls progress through Morning Glory, O begins to wonder how well she actually knew any of her former best friends and if she’s ready to confront the hard truths—and dangerous revelations—about Elle in her returning memories.
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books
Three years ago, Elle (the “E” in the self-proclaimed L.O.V.E. Club) disappeared from Calendula, an affluent Chinese American suburb in inland California. Soon afterward, Liberty and Vera (“L” and “V”) moved away, leaving O alone with her grief, abandonment, and confusion. . . until Liberty and Vera return for their senior year of high school.
Though the L.O.V.E. Club’s three remaining members once bonded as outcasts and gamers, they can’t pick up the pieces of their friendship. But the girls are drawn back to their old clubhouse, where they discover, loaded for them to play, a new game created by none other than the missing Elle.
One click, and Liberty, Vera, and O are ported into Morning Glory, an ever-evolving botanical fantasy coded with their lived experiences, complicated history, and repressed insecurities. Unbeknownst to the others, O can’t remember the events surrounding Elle’s disappearance—but within the game, Elle has sent O a cryptic hint about Morning Glory’s real nature.
While Liberty and Vera defeat increasingly sinister bosses, O grapples with the secret knowledge that her deepest wish, to reunite with Elle, might just come true. But as the girls progress through Morning Glory, O begins to wonder how well she actually knew any of her former best friends and if she’s ready to confront the hard truths—and dangerous revelations—about Elle in her returning memories.
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books
Audible Audio
First published August 5, 2025
About the author
Lio Min
2 books131 followersLio Min is the acclaimed author of Beating Heart Baby, a long-time music reporter, and a fullmetal optimist. They live in Oakland, California, and write toward the future.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
September 18, 2025
lio min i would give you my entire heart if i could
i’m gonna start this by talking about beating heart baby. i’ve reread bhb like a favorite song constantly on loop, so much so that i’d recognize lio min’s words anywhere. in any shape or format. in any world. when a debut is that special, it’s easy to imagine feeling nervous about the l.o.v.e. club. but i wasn’t.
and i was right not to be. because i recognized it too. another universe, same homecoming. the same voice, weaving a brand new tale.
the l.o.v.e. club is the story of liberty, O, vera, and elle—outcast gamers who were once best friends until elle disappeared, leaving O with nothing when liberty and vera move away, not even her memories of what transpired. that is, until liberty and vera return and together, all 3 girls get sucked into morning glory—a video game created by none other than the missing elle.
this book read like a miyazaki film. mesmerizing. whimsical. an emotional labyrinth in the best of ways. it has generational curses, the reckoning of secrets, and the bruises of grief. mostly, it’s an exploration of complexities of growing apart. how many friendships have i had to loosen my grip on so we could grow? how many polaroids have i run my fingers over, desperately holding on to someone already long gone? what am i but the weight of unresolved feelings and the lingering ache of what has been lost?
sometimes, when faced with a large cast, i leave with a sense of disconnect with most characters. here, i loved each girl, complex and messy as they were, together and apart. each moment between them felt like a kiss with a fist. how afraid they were. how hard they fought. i think about them all the time.
the other thing is this: i want to consume lio's brainworms in every format possible. i began this as an audiobook, quickly pairing it with my physical copy for Maximum Immersion into the world of morning glory. i don’t think anyone except for lio could’ve written something like this. who do i talk to to beg for a graphic novel or anime adaptation.
for now, i have this: glimmering nostalgia & heartache in remission. and just like a song or video game, i’m hitting replay again.
“it was good while it lasted.”
i’m gonna start this by talking about beating heart baby. i’ve reread bhb like a favorite song constantly on loop, so much so that i’d recognize lio min’s words anywhere. in any shape or format. in any world. when a debut is that special, it’s easy to imagine feeling nervous about the l.o.v.e. club. but i wasn’t.
and i was right not to be. because i recognized it too. another universe, same homecoming. the same voice, weaving a brand new tale.
the l.o.v.e. club is the story of liberty, O, vera, and elle—outcast gamers who were once best friends until elle disappeared, leaving O with nothing when liberty and vera move away, not even her memories of what transpired. that is, until liberty and vera return and together, all 3 girls get sucked into morning glory—a video game created by none other than the missing elle.
this book read like a miyazaki film. mesmerizing. whimsical. an emotional labyrinth in the best of ways. it has generational curses, the reckoning of secrets, and the bruises of grief. mostly, it’s an exploration of complexities of growing apart. how many friendships have i had to loosen my grip on so we could grow? how many polaroids have i run my fingers over, desperately holding on to someone already long gone? what am i but the weight of unresolved feelings and the lingering ache of what has been lost?
sometimes, when faced with a large cast, i leave with a sense of disconnect with most characters. here, i loved each girl, complex and messy as they were, together and apart. each moment between them felt like a kiss with a fist. how afraid they were. how hard they fought. i think about them all the time.
the other thing is this: i want to consume lio's brainworms in every format possible. i began this as an audiobook, quickly pairing it with my physical copy for Maximum Immersion into the world of morning glory. i don’t think anyone except for lio could’ve written something like this. who do i talk to to beg for a graphic novel or anime adaptation.
for now, i have this: glimmering nostalgia & heartache in remission. and just like a song or video game, i’m hitting replay again.
May 11, 2025
Plot was hard to follow at times and the mechanics of the game didn’t make sense to me. For example, the flowery language in O’s passages were confusing and unnecessary, in my opinion. This might not be true of the finished copy, as I read an early review copy, but I think this book could have used stronger editing. I kept reading for the mystery, but I didn’t feel strongly about the ending.
July 5, 2025
A stunning return by Lio Min! This novel was truly an ambitious project that pulled off the complexity of girl friendships. I was hooked by the cinematic premise (4 girls, 4 worlds, 4 bosses! So fun), and couldn't look away as it got darker, more complicated, and more layered. The prose was also so beautiful! Just a really wonderful, fun, and dark book!
July 13, 2026
This made a season of Pretty Little Liars look like a hard hitting docu-drama. Absolutely senseless plot that kept getting more ridiculous.
July 7, 2025
This is a unique, fun, and touching story. A group of girls, known as the L.O.V.E. Club due to the first letters in their names, were friends when they were younger. They bonded over being outcasts and gamers. When the E in the Club, Elle, disappeared and L and V moved away, O was left alone. When suddenly they reunite with O for senior year, chance would find them all at their old hangout spot on the same night. This is where they inexplicably get sucked into a video game made by Elle. Liberty, Vera and O must play their way through a four level game, with four bosses. As they play, it seems like each level was inspired by one of them. L and V are looking to get out, but O is secretly hoping that at the end of it all, she will be reunited with Elle again.
This is a great YA story! Lio Min touches upon racism, sexism, being transgender, and exploring sexuality. We navigate friendship, grief, self-discovery--all sorts of things that readers of a certain age can relate to! At the end of the day, being a teenager is hard and holding onto your friends is sometimes the only thing that can get you through. We also must contend with the fact that we don't always get the answers we want. Add the outcast vibes and video game aspect, and I think you have a slam dunk for a large audience of younger readers!
This is a great YA story! Lio Min touches upon racism, sexism, being transgender, and exploring sexuality. We navigate friendship, grief, self-discovery--all sorts of things that readers of a certain age can relate to! At the end of the day, being a teenager is hard and holding onto your friends is sometimes the only thing that can get you through. We also must contend with the fact that we don't always get the answers we want. Add the outcast vibes and video game aspect, and I think you have a slam dunk for a large audience of younger readers!
September 30, 2025
I was unsure about this book since it sounded SO different from Beating Heart Baby, which is one of my all-time favorite books. I should have never doubted Lio Min because wow did he deliver! This book is such an ode to girlhood and the way this played with structure, with narration, with time...I was shocked by how many times this book shocked me. It's not that this is a thriller with "twists" per se, but more like a magic coin whose sides change every time it is flipped. The structure is truly so creative and I'm so impressed by how Lio Min chose to tell this story.
The premise begins with the "E" member of the L.O.V.E. club missing, and the remaining 3 members of the friendship group are sucked into a video game seemingly created by the missing E. But this is no Jumangi movie! As the girls traverse through the video game, they also learn about each other, reliving each other's most painful memories and discovering unsettling truths about one another, and uncovering generational secrets. Just as Beating Heart Baby was an ode to music and to internet friends, this book is an ode to girlhood, to female friendships, to video games. I'm so impressed and this absolutely deserves so many more readers!
Thank you NetGalley and Flatiron for the advanced reader copy.
The premise begins with the "E" member of the L.O.V.E. club missing, and the remaining 3 members of the friendship group are sucked into a video game seemingly created by the missing E. But this is no Jumangi movie! As the girls traverse through the video game, they also learn about each other, reliving each other's most painful memories and discovering unsettling truths about one another, and uncovering generational secrets. Just as Beating Heart Baby was an ode to music and to internet friends, this book is an ode to girlhood, to female friendships, to video games. I'm so impressed and this absolutely deserves so many more readers!
Thank you NetGalley and Flatiron for the advanced reader copy.
June 1, 2025
3 Stars
This is a hard review to write, because some of the passages are so lyrical. Some of the messages are so poignant. Some of the feelings captured are just so... good. But most of my experience was just vague confusion, and that's... not good. It's a mixed bag. And I'm sad about it.
I need more time to dive into what's going on here, but I'll get there. My full review will be available at Gateway Reviews on July 25, 2025. Stop by to see if I can make sense of this one.
Note: I was provided with an ARC by the publisher through Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.
This is a hard review to write, because some of the passages are so lyrical. Some of the messages are so poignant. Some of the feelings captured are just so... good. But most of my experience was just vague confusion, and that's... not good. It's a mixed bag. And I'm sad about it.
I need more time to dive into what's going on here, but I'll get there. My full review will be available at Gateway Reviews on July 25, 2025. Stop by to see if I can make sense of this one.
Note: I was provided with an ARC by the publisher through Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.
June 13, 2026
Mini blurb: Three estranged Chinese-American girls reunite after three years and are pulled into a videogame (purportedly created by their fourth, missing friend) that tests their frayed bond, their sanity and their memory, and might reveal darker secrets than they're prepared for.
***
Rated 4.5 really.
Sci-fi meets fantasy in this atmospheric, whimsical, touching novel that tackles heritage/generational trauma/familial abuse, repressed memories, messy/toxic/all-consuming friendship, growing up and apart, learning to be your own person...oh, and transness, in a very honest, empathy-inducing way (we also get to see how trans experiences can be at odds, and you can hurt the very people you should feel closest to). Mind you - if the premise sounds up your alley but you hope to get a rationale for the whole "pulled into a videogame" thing, better set your sights on a different book. But if you can live without an explanation (which is SO not be the point here anyway), you'll be rewarded with a rich story - both visually and emotionally - and some beautiful prose that, under its luscious surface, manages to deliver messages in spades. I'll be honest - the "gameplay" can be confusing at times, and O's writing in the "commands" notebook even more so, bordering on indecipherable and purple for the sake of it (which doesn't make sense, since she's supposed to be a writer in bloom). But those were just minor annoyances for me. And I did appreciate how, while the girls' story gets closure (as much as the one of a group of people on the cusp of adulthood can), the ending extends beyond their experience, addressing the neverending cycle of being young and finding your tribe, but also having to evolve and leave a part of your teen self behind.
TW: Child/domestic abuse, racism, transphobia, toxic friendship, trauma/generational trauma, bullying, death of a parent, violence/wounds, murder/suicide, abortion, eating disorder, blood and gore.
Note: as a rule, I review every book that I rate 4 stars and above in full, unless it's a novella or an anthology. But I didn't want to go in too deep about this one to avoid spoilers, and it felt easy to summarise its contents (and my opinions) in a few sentences, so I took the mini-review route.
***
Rated 4.5 really.
Sci-fi meets fantasy in this atmospheric, whimsical, touching novel that tackles heritage/generational trauma/familial abuse, repressed memories, messy/toxic/all-consuming friendship, growing up and apart, learning to be your own person...oh, and transness, in a very honest, empathy-inducing way (we also get to see how trans experiences can be at odds, and you can hurt the very people you should feel closest to). Mind you - if the premise sounds up your alley but you hope to get a rationale for the whole "pulled into a videogame" thing, better set your sights on a different book. But if you can live without an explanation (which is SO not be the point here anyway), you'll be rewarded with a rich story - both visually and emotionally - and some beautiful prose that, under its luscious surface, manages to deliver messages in spades. I'll be honest - the "gameplay" can be confusing at times, and O's writing in the "commands" notebook even more so, bordering on indecipherable and purple for the sake of it (which doesn't make sense, since she's supposed to be a writer in bloom). But those were just minor annoyances for me. And I did appreciate how, while the girls' story gets closure (as much as the one of a group of people on the cusp of adulthood can), the ending extends beyond their experience, addressing the neverending cycle of being young and finding your tribe, but also having to evolve and leave a part of your teen self behind.
TW: Child/domestic abuse, racism, transphobia, toxic friendship, trauma/generational trauma, bullying, death of a parent, violence/wounds, murder/suicide, abortion, eating disorder, blood and gore.
Note: as a rule, I review every book that I rate 4 stars and above in full, unless it's a novella or an anthology. But I didn't want to go in too deep about this one to avoid spoilers, and it felt easy to summarise its contents (and my opinions) in a few sentences, so I took the mini-review route.
February 21, 2026
Vibrant and surreal in a way that’s evocative of the games it alludes to. All things are fleeting, but this book was a beautiful reminder of the things that we can’t let go of and bittersweet reality that often accompanies it.
July 26, 2025
Huge thanks to Flatiron Books for the physical ARC. I love the cover and colors and this was a cool one to receive.
This novel spans genres in a pretty solid and unique way. It’s deeply rooted in grief, with three of four best friends (whose names start with letters that make up The L.O.V.E. Club) dealing with the loss of the fourth. The story is shown through O, and she can’t really remember anything about what happened. That helps the author pepper in some mystery, and also allows for all the cards to not be present on the table at the start. Their love of video games, which is part of what brought them together, is exploited as they are all transported into their lost best friend, E’s, game-world. It kind of brought to mind the sequel/reboot of Jumanji, but that’s where the similarities stopped. That meshes scifi into the otherwise real-world Calendula, California, but then the levels of the video games present an almost fantasy-style layer on top of the settings the characters know from the world. This is also helped by L and V getting a bow and arrow and a sword, too. Then with the grief, and when some of the information about E comes to light, there is a tinge of horror there.
So there were some things in this that just didn’t work for me. While the bulk of this novel takes place in a video game, none of the actual descriptions of the levels felt like a video game to me. If anything, it could have been a portal fantasy and that might have been sold better. O’s gifted power is a notebook, as of course she is a writer. She is able to elicit help from L and V by writing out what they want to do, and while this may have actually been incredibly well done writing (as in an author pretending to write like a high schooler that thought they were a great writer) a lot of it was confusing and wordy, and seriously cringey. There is also a thread throughout about how much E loved flowers. While there is payoff for its inclusion in the end, as someone that doesn’t know about flowers, it felt like a chunk of this book was using descriptors that brought nothing to mind. Flower names used to enhance mentioned colors felt kind of forced and left me confused.
There were also things that continued to reel me in over and over in how well they were done. Calendula is a Chinese American suburb and the author does a great job of painting exactly what that means. The culture bled into everything around them, their intricacies and secrets, the dos and don’ts (if you will) that are (not so) quiet expectations, the challenges of thriving—or even surviving—there. It felt like a perfect glimpse into a world that wasn’t mine, and It was just enough. I’m all for the representation here as well. The layered in grief really hit for me. While the club had each other, E was truly O’s best-best friend. The kind of friendship where it’s hard to tell where one person begins and the other ends. So when she lost her, she just kind or crumbled, lost herself. I also thought it was clever to show how each girl was grieving separately, because each person carries it differently.
Then what really shone are the friendships. This author allows them to be natural, to be hectic, to be anything but cut and dry and nice and neat. They felt real, and every time they have some kind of revelation together I felt for them. The emotion described is powerful and felt almost like a tangible thing you could hold. These friends love each other. They have lost and they have grown. They may never be the same, but that’s still okay. The writing is imbued with a beautiful take on the world, even though their world is not wholly beautiful itself, and I loved the messiness. There are no even lines or comfy finishes here.
https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-l-...
This novel spans genres in a pretty solid and unique way. It’s deeply rooted in grief, with three of four best friends (whose names start with letters that make up The L.O.V.E. Club) dealing with the loss of the fourth. The story is shown through O, and she can’t really remember anything about what happened. That helps the author pepper in some mystery, and also allows for all the cards to not be present on the table at the start. Their love of video games, which is part of what brought them together, is exploited as they are all transported into their lost best friend, E’s, game-world. It kind of brought to mind the sequel/reboot of Jumanji, but that’s where the similarities stopped. That meshes scifi into the otherwise real-world Calendula, California, but then the levels of the video games present an almost fantasy-style layer on top of the settings the characters know from the world. This is also helped by L and V getting a bow and arrow and a sword, too. Then with the grief, and when some of the information about E comes to light, there is a tinge of horror there.
So there were some things in this that just didn’t work for me. While the bulk of this novel takes place in a video game, none of the actual descriptions of the levels felt like a video game to me. If anything, it could have been a portal fantasy and that might have been sold better. O’s gifted power is a notebook, as of course she is a writer. She is able to elicit help from L and V by writing out what they want to do, and while this may have actually been incredibly well done writing (as in an author pretending to write like a high schooler that thought they were a great writer) a lot of it was confusing and wordy, and seriously cringey. There is also a thread throughout about how much E loved flowers. While there is payoff for its inclusion in the end, as someone that doesn’t know about flowers, it felt like a chunk of this book was using descriptors that brought nothing to mind. Flower names used to enhance mentioned colors felt kind of forced and left me confused.
There were also things that continued to reel me in over and over in how well they were done. Calendula is a Chinese American suburb and the author does a great job of painting exactly what that means. The culture bled into everything around them, their intricacies and secrets, the dos and don’ts (if you will) that are (not so) quiet expectations, the challenges of thriving—or even surviving—there. It felt like a perfect glimpse into a world that wasn’t mine, and It was just enough. I’m all for the representation here as well. The layered in grief really hit for me. While the club had each other, E was truly O’s best-best friend. The kind of friendship where it’s hard to tell where one person begins and the other ends. So when she lost her, she just kind or crumbled, lost herself. I also thought it was clever to show how each girl was grieving separately, because each person carries it differently.
Then what really shone are the friendships. This author allows them to be natural, to be hectic, to be anything but cut and dry and nice and neat. They felt real, and every time they have some kind of revelation together I felt for them. The emotion described is powerful and felt almost like a tangible thing you could hold. These friends love each other. They have lost and they have grown. They may never be the same, but that’s still okay. The writing is imbued with a beautiful take on the world, even though their world is not wholly beautiful itself, and I loved the messiness. There are no even lines or comfy finishes here.
https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-l-...
May 27, 2026
3/5
The use of flowers kept me going.
This book is written beautifully. Elle loves flowers and O loves Elle, so she's always describing colours as their floral shade. It's such a fun way to see colour and add that extra dimension to the story. I love it!
However, Elle's other love is video games and when O, Liberty, and Vera get stuck inside Morning Glory—the game Elle always wanted to make—it starts to unravel. The game logic is both bizarre but also incredibly repetitive. Each boss fight is the same thing four times over. Each girl has their own issues/secrets/trauma to unpack but it was still hard to get through. The diversity of the charactets was wonderful and getting to see more Trans characters is beautiful and bittersweet. Watching each one fight to overcome their insecurities was a wonderful rollercoaster.
This seems like a book about friendship, love, loss, and grief—and it is—but it twisted into this secondary narrative that is about family and sacrifice and immigrant life. Although important and a huge part for Asian Americans, it felt very flat until closer to the end where it really slaps you and overshadows the story of the friends and mystery of Elle's disappearance. I suppose you could say it stops being about the individual and starts being about the collective.
Elle's mystery wasn't very mysterious. O's amnesia didn't play out like an interesting unravelling of the truth a láWe Were Liars, but became frustrating as the reader figured it out pretty quickly and L and V were blocked by the plot of "game rules" to not be able to address it in a timely manner to heal the friendship. Instead we get to go through the trauma of each girl before everyone is allowed to say the forbidden truths. It didn't hold up for me but my curiosity helped pull me through.
Lio Min has such a beautiful way of writing and bringing forward Asian American stories is so important, not just this month but always so we can see and understand what others go through. Fiction mirrors real life, so always listen and support authors when they're picking the hard topics, experiences, and truths to show. I will always love reading stories about how it feels living as an immigrant or first/second/ect generation person. It's not always easy and you always learn something new from a different perspective. I found so many quotes in this book and I cannot wait to read more by Min. This book sings! I also loved the illustrations for each of the doors. I searched up so many flowers while reading this, it instantly becomes a book I love when it teaches me things!!
I'm so glad my library has several copies. Check your local library for a copy if you like books with flawed and interesting female leads, stories that are sad but powerful, and stories full of gaming, fighting, and beautiful settings. You won't regret it :)
The use of flowers kept me going.
This book is written beautifully. Elle loves flowers and O loves Elle, so she's always describing colours as their floral shade. It's such a fun way to see colour and add that extra dimension to the story. I love it!
However, Elle's other love is video games and when O, Liberty, and Vera get stuck inside Morning Glory—the game Elle always wanted to make—it starts to unravel. The game logic is both bizarre but also incredibly repetitive. Each boss fight is the same thing four times over. Each girl has their own issues/secrets/trauma to unpack but it was still hard to get through. The diversity of the charactets was wonderful and getting to see more Trans characters is beautiful and bittersweet. Watching each one fight to overcome their insecurities was a wonderful rollercoaster.
This seems like a book about friendship, love, loss, and grief—and it is—but it twisted into this secondary narrative that is about family and sacrifice and immigrant life. Although important and a huge part for Asian Americans, it felt very flat until closer to the end where it really slaps you and overshadows the story of the friends and mystery of Elle's disappearance. I suppose you could say it stops being about the individual and starts being about the collective.
Elle's mystery wasn't very mysterious. O's amnesia didn't play out like an interesting unravelling of the truth a láWe Were Liars, but became frustrating as the reader figured it out pretty quickly and L and V were blocked by the plot of "game rules" to not be able to address it in a timely manner to heal the friendship. Instead we get to go through the trauma of each girl before everyone is allowed to say the forbidden truths. It didn't hold up for me but my curiosity helped pull me through.
Lio Min has such a beautiful way of writing and bringing forward Asian American stories is so important, not just this month but always so we can see and understand what others go through. Fiction mirrors real life, so always listen and support authors when they're picking the hard topics, experiences, and truths to show. I will always love reading stories about how it feels living as an immigrant or first/second/ect generation person. It's not always easy and you always learn something new from a different perspective. I found so many quotes in this book and I cannot wait to read more by Min. This book sings! I also loved the illustrations for each of the doors. I searched up so many flowers while reading this, it instantly becomes a book I love when it teaches me things!!
I'm so glad my library has several copies. Check your local library for a copy if you like books with flawed and interesting female leads, stories that are sad but powerful, and stories full of gaming, fighting, and beautiful settings. You won't regret it :)
September 6, 2025
The LOVE Club was a beautiful exploration into the intricacies of loss, which in many ways has many layers and levels. Setting the story up as an isekai (getting transported into a game or book a la Jumanji) was kind of iconic and is a new favorite trope of mine. But I’m definitely getting ahead of myself once again.
“O” is the last remaining member of the LOVE Club, where each member’s first name initial corresponds to a letter in the word LOVE. They didn’t become friends for that reason or change their names, it just worked out that way. When Elle suddenly disappeared 3 years ago, followed by Vera and Liberty moving away, O was left to wallow in her grief alone. But while the years may change a person, the memories still exist of who they were before.
When Liberty and Vera come back to town to finish out their last year of High School, it’s almost as if all the reasons they became friends in the first place are just within O’s fingertips. They mysteriously find their way back to the clubhouse where they all used to spend their time together, only to find it feeling like they never left; a game is booted up and ready for them to play created by none other than their long lost friend Elle.
Morning Glory is coded in their friendship with every level having been made for one of them. And when they begin to play it, they find themselves sucked into it… and Elle is there waiting. But why is the game keeping them from asking any questions as to where she’s been and why can’t O remember things she knows she should know?
This was a sci-fi mystery that while I kind of had an inkling what the end result was going to be, I was still crushed when I got there. It’s like when someone plays a before and after shot of a war. You already know what they are going to show you next, but you just don’t know the extent of the damage. What led up to that? Why did it happen? So to say I’m a little heartbroken atm is an understatement.
I really enjoyed my first foray into Lio Min’s books. I’ve had Beating Heart Baby sitting on my TBR cart since it was released, but it may be time to pick it up. I’m a new fan of theirs!!!
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ALC of the book.
“O” is the last remaining member of the LOVE Club, where each member’s first name initial corresponds to a letter in the word LOVE. They didn’t become friends for that reason or change their names, it just worked out that way. When Elle suddenly disappeared 3 years ago, followed by Vera and Liberty moving away, O was left to wallow in her grief alone. But while the years may change a person, the memories still exist of who they were before.
When Liberty and Vera come back to town to finish out their last year of High School, it’s almost as if all the reasons they became friends in the first place are just within O’s fingertips. They mysteriously find their way back to the clubhouse where they all used to spend their time together, only to find it feeling like they never left; a game is booted up and ready for them to play created by none other than their long lost friend Elle.
Morning Glory is coded in their friendship with every level having been made for one of them. And when they begin to play it, they find themselves sucked into it… and Elle is there waiting. But why is the game keeping them from asking any questions as to where she’s been and why can’t O remember things she knows she should know?
This was a sci-fi mystery that while I kind of had an inkling what the end result was going to be, I was still crushed when I got there. It’s like when someone plays a before and after shot of a war. You already know what they are going to show you next, but you just don’t know the extent of the damage. What led up to that? Why did it happen? So to say I’m a little heartbroken atm is an understatement.
I really enjoyed my first foray into Lio Min’s books. I’ve had Beating Heart Baby sitting on my TBR cart since it was released, but it may be time to pick it up. I’m a new fan of theirs!!!
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ALC of the book.
August 21, 2025
2025 reads: 223/300
i received a complimentary audio copy from the publisher as part of their influencer program. i am leaving this review voluntarily.
three years ago, elle disappeared from calendula. soon after, liberty and vera moved away, leaving o the last remaining member of the l.o.v.e. club in calendula and alone with her confusion and grief. when liberty and vera return for senior year, though, the club’s three remaining members find it difficult to pick up where they left off. still, they find themselves drawn to their old clubhouse, where they find that a new game, created by elle, is loaded up for them to play. one click, and they find themselves inside the game, called morning glory, which is based on their own history, experiences, and insecurities. while liberty and vera defeat increasingly sinister bosses, o struggles with the hidden knowledge that she just might be reunited with elle. as they progress through the game, though, ugly secrets come to light, and the trio must decide whether they’re ready to confront these truths.
the premise had such a unique concept, so i was quick to download this one when i got the offer! i mean, what could go wrong with a botanical fantasy game with storylines directly related to the mcs’ lives? (don’t answer that…) i loved seeing them navigate their own hurts through the game and grow closer to one another because of it. they’re all considered “outcasts” (though for different reasons), which is why they started the l.o.v.e. club in the first place. there were so many plot twists/reveals that made this story even more appealing. this book dealt with so many tough subjects—grief, racism, sexism, transphobia, to name a few—while still making the reader feel immersed in the game at the same time. the audiobook was narrated by alice wen, and i’m sure this was a big part of why it felt immersive to me. i highly recommend this book to any YA reader who enjoys video games and complex friendships.
i received a complimentary audio copy from the publisher as part of their influencer program. i am leaving this review voluntarily.
three years ago, elle disappeared from calendula. soon after, liberty and vera moved away, leaving o the last remaining member of the l.o.v.e. club in calendula and alone with her confusion and grief. when liberty and vera return for senior year, though, the club’s three remaining members find it difficult to pick up where they left off. still, they find themselves drawn to their old clubhouse, where they find that a new game, created by elle, is loaded up for them to play. one click, and they find themselves inside the game, called morning glory, which is based on their own history, experiences, and insecurities. while liberty and vera defeat increasingly sinister bosses, o struggles with the hidden knowledge that she just might be reunited with elle. as they progress through the game, though, ugly secrets come to light, and the trio must decide whether they’re ready to confront these truths.
the premise had such a unique concept, so i was quick to download this one when i got the offer! i mean, what could go wrong with a botanical fantasy game with storylines directly related to the mcs’ lives? (don’t answer that…) i loved seeing them navigate their own hurts through the game and grow closer to one another because of it. they’re all considered “outcasts” (though for different reasons), which is why they started the l.o.v.e. club in the first place. there were so many plot twists/reveals that made this story even more appealing. this book dealt with so many tough subjects—grief, racism, sexism, transphobia, to name a few—while still making the reader feel immersed in the game at the same time. the audiobook was narrated by alice wen, and i’m sure this was a big part of why it felt immersive to me. i highly recommend this book to any YA reader who enjoys video games and complex friendships.
July 13, 2025
Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Flatiron for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Probably closer to a 2.5??
On a high level, the concept for this book is great. Dealing with personal traumas + cyclical community traumas through the lens of a video game is a classic move, but effective in the right hands. It also does some interesting things with style across the whole text.
My issues with the book is that pacing in it was a nightmare, my suspension of disbelief was regularly shattered with the force of a hammer against glass, and that the style.of the book matched the style of the protagonist: labyrinthine and overly purple prosey. I wanted to like it, and there are certain scenes that landed home really nicely, but the plot of the whole thing felt overly contrived and deeply flimsy in ways that made me rush towards finishing it because I wanted it over with, rather than because I was excited.
I will say that one of the joys of this book is how much it's rooted in a sense of place, but I think that was the main thing that landed home really well.
Probably closer to a 2.5??
On a high level, the concept for this book is great. Dealing with personal traumas + cyclical community traumas through the lens of a video game is a classic move, but effective in the right hands. It also does some interesting things with style across the whole text.
My issues with the book is that pacing in it was a nightmare, my suspension of disbelief was regularly shattered with the force of a hammer against glass, and that the style.of the book matched the style of the protagonist: labyrinthine and overly purple prosey. I wanted to like it, and there are certain scenes that landed home really nicely, but the plot of the whole thing felt overly contrived and deeply flimsy in ways that made me rush towards finishing it because I wanted it over with, rather than because I was excited.
I will say that one of the joys of this book is how much it's rooted in a sense of place, but I think that was the main thing that landed home really well.
September 10, 2025
As a fellow Asian woman who values her cultural identity immensely but struggles to express her emotions especially during loss, and has seen the model minority myth in action, this book hit hard. I am not sure why I expected a nice easy going story, but this was absolutely the opposite and I am happier for it. Min has such a unique way to describe loss and culture, especially using the symbolism of gaming to tie deeper themes together. Friendship, family, and relationships are other major themes in this book and it was done in such an inclusive, nuance, and heartfelt way that I felt myself tear up a few times. I love the way that it also touches on generational truma and forgiveness in a raw yet powerful way, and many times, written beautifully. The ending truly did feel like the beginning, and I'm blown away by this piece of art.
** Disclosure: I recieved a free copy, but all thoughts and opinions are my own**
** Disclosure: I recieved a free copy, but all thoughts and opinions are my own**
August 1, 2025
Disclosure Statement: I received an ARC of the novel from the publisher. My opinions are entirely my own and have not been influenced in any way by the author or publisher.
I want to get it out of the way early: The L.O.V.E. Club is a good book cluttered with perhaps too many ideas that obscure its focus. My biggest reaction to the book is simply that it's trying to make a really big swing to explore some important questions about growing up, about friendship, about cyclical, generational trauma, and about how memory fits into building self and relationships; but in all the big swings it makes, it also loses consistency in its pacing, its cohesiveness, and the action takes on a metaphorical duality that obscures actual meaning.
But in spite of what I believe to be its imperfections, I resolutely admire the work this novel is doing. Min, as a writer, pulls back away from the action and the plot to center tightly on characters, and each one of the main characters of the novel has a role to play in their own process of self-discovery. There's a lot of painful meaning-making in this book, a process that is messy and delicate, with characters who are not fragile but are afraid of becoming so. The best parts of the novel are the characters and their interactions and reflections. In all the book, I found myself the least interested in how it handles the central plot devices, because it's the character reflection and introspection that drives this story forward.
One of the elements of craft that stood out to me about the book is how often characters speak in false starts and fragmented sentences. These half-thoughts operate as a form of self-censorship, and the book is ultimately all about the ways we self-censor and obscure the most important parts of our lives. These half-starts and false directions contribute to the novel's perspective on friendships and relationships as well, as if the act of censorship is critical to maintaining relationships or maintaining boundaries between one's self and others. It's an interesting craft decision that aligns with how much of the book also wants to speak through obscurity, its metaphorical layering obfuscating truths until it is time to step back and allow those truths to speak and exist more plainly.
As a work of art, The L.O.V.E. Club feels thoroughly deliberate, compacted with a lot to say and also a lot to protect. All of that is valuable, worthy of attention, and definitely the highlight of the book.
Although I often found frustration with the way the book is paced, I also thoroughly believe that this book was written as very specific art, speaking to a specific readership with a specific code. I genuinely hope this book strikes hot for that readership, as I think there's a lot of power and surprise to be found through these pages.
I want to get it out of the way early: The L.O.V.E. Club is a good book cluttered with perhaps too many ideas that obscure its focus. My biggest reaction to the book is simply that it's trying to make a really big swing to explore some important questions about growing up, about friendship, about cyclical, generational trauma, and about how memory fits into building self and relationships; but in all the big swings it makes, it also loses consistency in its pacing, its cohesiveness, and the action takes on a metaphorical duality that obscures actual meaning.
But in spite of what I believe to be its imperfections, I resolutely admire the work this novel is doing. Min, as a writer, pulls back away from the action and the plot to center tightly on characters, and each one of the main characters of the novel has a role to play in their own process of self-discovery. There's a lot of painful meaning-making in this book, a process that is messy and delicate, with characters who are not fragile but are afraid of becoming so. The best parts of the novel are the characters and their interactions and reflections. In all the book, I found myself the least interested in how it handles the central plot devices, because it's the character reflection and introspection that drives this story forward.
One of the elements of craft that stood out to me about the book is how often characters speak in false starts and fragmented sentences. These half-thoughts operate as a form of self-censorship, and the book is ultimately all about the ways we self-censor and obscure the most important parts of our lives. These half-starts and false directions contribute to the novel's perspective on friendships and relationships as well, as if the act of censorship is critical to maintaining relationships or maintaining boundaries between one's self and others. It's an interesting craft decision that aligns with how much of the book also wants to speak through obscurity, its metaphorical layering obfuscating truths until it is time to step back and allow those truths to speak and exist more plainly.
As a work of art, The L.O.V.E. Club feels thoroughly deliberate, compacted with a lot to say and also a lot to protect. All of that is valuable, worthy of attention, and definitely the highlight of the book.
Although I often found frustration with the way the book is paced, I also thoroughly believe that this book was written as very specific art, speaking to a specific readership with a specific code. I genuinely hope this book strikes hot for that readership, as I think there's a lot of power and surprise to be found through these pages.
November 4, 2025
Not so many authors can pull on my heartstrings the same way that Lio Min does.
July 15, 2025
Sometimes you read a book and you kinda know it’s good, but at the same time, you know that you are definitely not the target audience for it. Sometimes it’s easy to get past, but with The L.O.V.E. Club by Lio Min, I waffled back and forth quite a bit. I liked it, but since I don’t fall into a number of boxes, I had a hard time relating to the characters in many ways.
When I first read the synopsis, I thought maybe it was a bit of an homage to Tron. The early 80’s Disney film is at the same time very dated and holds up well in a strange way -- so much so that they are releasing a third Tron movie later this year, 43 years after the first one was released. And there are hints of that, but the video game aspect of this story -- the part I figured I’d relate to -- are actually very minor in many ways. The game exists, but the mechanics are poorly explained, if at all, and it basically comes across as a fever-dream of a fantasy world with no real rules. If you can get past that, the real story has a lot of meat and depth to it.
The bulk of the story is the relationships between four girls and their families. Liberty, Vera, and O meet up, three years after the disappearance of the fourth member of the L.O.V.E. Club - Elle. Elle wrote a computer game that they get sucked into and they are forced to find the exit while dredging up the ghosts of their past. Each of them are Chinese-American daughters and their culture has a huge impact on the story. A big part of the mystery stems from the fact that O is an unreliable narrator and can’t remember the events of three years ago when O disappeared from their lives.
So ultimately, the game mechanics matter little as the important aspects are discovering the truth behind their own lives, relationships, and parents.
It is a bit clunky getting there, but in the end, I found The L.O.V.E. Club to be a healing story for the three remaining members of the friend group. They discover not only who they really are, but what they mean to each other in the end. There are some very moving passages that Lio Min pens in the process and there is some real heartbreak and tragedy along the way. But, you can’t have an omelette without breaking any eggs and Elle’s videogame broke the eggs necessary to repair their relationships.
Like I said, I don’t fit into a number of boxes. As a middle-aged white man from the Midwest, it was hard at times to relate to teenage Chinese-American girls or the transfer of their native culture from China to America and the lasting effect that has on themselves or their families. But ultimately, Lio Min wrote a compelling story that made it easy to get past the parts I couldn’t relate to with stories that all of us can empathize with.
Thank you to Flatiron for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
When I first read the synopsis, I thought maybe it was a bit of an homage to Tron. The early 80’s Disney film is at the same time very dated and holds up well in a strange way -- so much so that they are releasing a third Tron movie later this year, 43 years after the first one was released. And there are hints of that, but the video game aspect of this story -- the part I figured I’d relate to -- are actually very minor in many ways. The game exists, but the mechanics are poorly explained, if at all, and it basically comes across as a fever-dream of a fantasy world with no real rules. If you can get past that, the real story has a lot of meat and depth to it.
The bulk of the story is the relationships between four girls and their families. Liberty, Vera, and O meet up, three years after the disappearance of the fourth member of the L.O.V.E. Club - Elle. Elle wrote a computer game that they get sucked into and they are forced to find the exit while dredging up the ghosts of their past. Each of them are Chinese-American daughters and their culture has a huge impact on the story. A big part of the mystery stems from the fact that O is an unreliable narrator and can’t remember the events of three years ago when O disappeared from their lives.
So ultimately, the game mechanics matter little as the important aspects are discovering the truth behind their own lives, relationships, and parents.
It is a bit clunky getting there, but in the end, I found The L.O.V.E. Club to be a healing story for the three remaining members of the friend group. They discover not only who they really are, but what they mean to each other in the end. There are some very moving passages that Lio Min pens in the process and there is some real heartbreak and tragedy along the way. But, you can’t have an omelette without breaking any eggs and Elle’s videogame broke the eggs necessary to repair their relationships.
Like I said, I don’t fit into a number of boxes. As a middle-aged white man from the Midwest, it was hard at times to relate to teenage Chinese-American girls or the transfer of their native culture from China to America and the lasting effect that has on themselves or their families. But ultimately, Lio Min wrote a compelling story that made it easy to get past the parts I couldn’t relate to with stories that all of us can empathize with.
Thank you to Flatiron for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
June 1, 2026
a truly one of a kind read to start the summer. a visceral exploration of girlhood, memory, and the grief of losing both, this book takes a common structure and fleshes it out with incredible violence, love, and generational storytelling. it's impossible not to root for these girls to find what they're looking for, to the point where you want them to turn back once they find it. this book was a surprisingly painful read, layers of beauty in flowers and friendship growing between those of horror and injustice. everything should have been better for them, and yet, they live because it wasn't. the through line between generations of friendship and violence was perfectly done, and gave each individual character more life.
the writing was not my style, blending really lyrical with very upfront. I often wished for more subtlety, especially with truths buried within the events of the game, but it did help the flow of the last third of the book, which is mostly information being presented to the characters and reader. I also wish we had more time to explore the characters of liberty and vera in the present, rather than their memories, especially since they made up 2/3 of the main trio. this is a character driven story with a semi-unreliable narrator, and that has its strengths. but as a character first reader, I would have liked more.
I have to say: this book pushed the limits for what I am comfortable reading about in terms of violence, each act described (with immense intention) in visceral, agonizing detail. not in the way a gothic would, but the way your mind does when you see a person truly hurt. unsettling and resonating, but I can't recommend looking at a trigger warning list enough.
a great read, even if a lot of it ended up not being for me. this book will likely stay with me for quite a while, and each of the flowers, curling around doorways and arches, will continue to bloom in my mind's eye.
the writing was not my style, blending really lyrical with very upfront. I often wished for more subtlety, especially with truths buried within the events of the game, but it did help the flow of the last third of the book, which is mostly information being presented to the characters and reader. I also wish we had more time to explore the characters of liberty and vera in the present, rather than their memories, especially since they made up 2/3 of the main trio. this is a character driven story with a semi-unreliable narrator, and that has its strengths. but as a character first reader, I would have liked more.
I have to say: this book pushed the limits for what I am comfortable reading about in terms of violence, each act described (with immense intention) in visceral, agonizing detail. not in the way a gothic would, but the way your mind does when you see a person truly hurt. unsettling and resonating, but I can't recommend looking at a trigger warning list enough.
a great read, even if a lot of it ended up not being for me. this book will likely stay with me for quite a while, and each of the flowers, curling around doorways and arches, will continue to bloom in my mind's eye.
July 7, 2025
4,5, była trochę płakówa dla mnie, temat traumy pokoleniowej uderza inaczej i jeżeli macie przeczytać jakąś książkę na temat gier video to powinna być to właśnie ta książka…
November 1, 2025
This was Such a brilliant idea but the book itself flopped. Maybe I just hated the audiobook but idk it just went on and on and on and on and didn’t really make much sense? So much of the flow was interrupted by “flowery” (iykyk) prose and it made everything choppy and messy. I didn’t care about any of the characters unfortunately. There were way too many plots going on it just wasn’t it for me.
July 20, 2025
The LOVE Club by Lio min, the book is about four teenage girls who all became friends because in the third grade they were essentially all outsiders. It’s senior year one of the friends L has been missing for three years and her best friend oh has been stagnant in morning her loss. Vera and liberty moved away around the same time L went missing but it’s senior year and their back. The three remaining girls all unknown to each other meet up at their middle school hang out and before they know it they’re in a game called morning glory set up by their missing friend and believe if they finish the game and beat the bosses they will see her again. Something oh is banking on especially since she has no memory of why or any of the events surrounding El going missing. I love RPG and video game type stories and we’re so excited to read this one although I did feel as if something in the game didn’t make sense. There’s four levels in each level is a girls “story“ and although I found a lot of this book interesting it seemed there were a lot of things that left me confused as I said overall I really enjoyed the story the mystery and really liked all the girls liberty was my favorite especially given her backstory and challenges, although I must admit when it came to oh there were some things about her that truly irritated me but as the book went on I really liked her. through each girl story we get to know them and I think if you love video games and likable people to root for this is definitely a great book to read. I would have given it more stars if there was a little more rhyme to the reason throughout the game but even with that bit of confusion it was an interesting story with a great mystery. #NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview,#LioMin, #TheLOVEClub,
July 15, 2025
Thank you Flatiron for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Lio Min's YA sci-fi, The L.O.V.E. Club brings readers on a journey of teenage friendships and video games with heart-breaking themes balanced with heart-pounding action. Three years after Elle goes missing, Liberty, Vera, and O are taken into a video game she created where they will have to face each others secrets and mysterious history.
This book is a true emotional rollercoaster, but it's beautiful in every moment. O is left with no memories of what happened three years ago, or any time between then and now. Liberty and Vera remember it all, but the game forbids them from explaining any of it to O. As they reunite and go through the game together, the secrets and memories they tried to bury are revealed. It's hardly ever happy. Most of the things the game reveals are the hardest truths they could face, and any ability they had to hide them is taken. I was nearly brought to tears so many times in this story.
Though as hard and emotional as this story may be, there's a light within it that will capture the hearts of the readers. It's a journey of secrets and the things we hide, but it's a journey of discovery as well. There are discussions of race, gender, and understanding ourselves. It's looking at every moment, good and bad, and pushing through it all. The characters may struggle, but they find themselves in the end. They learn who they are, what they need to do, and, most of all, what hidden things they need to release to move on.
Readers will feel all the emotions of the story, and they'll feel like they're really there with the characters. Min's writing is incredibly atmospheric, sucking readers into a world they can see in great detail. I often feel like first-person point of view can limit the world-building, keeping us stuck in one characters head. This book, however, lets readers know everything, even as we stay with one character. You know the world and the characters and every little thing in between. It's never just the narrator who feels important.
Lio Min has created a stand-out 2025 release with The L.O.V.E. Club. With the exploration of grief and self understanding, and their addictively descriptive writing style, this is a story readers need to keep their eyes on. It's a story you'll never forget.
Lio Min's YA sci-fi, The L.O.V.E. Club brings readers on a journey of teenage friendships and video games with heart-breaking themes balanced with heart-pounding action. Three years after Elle goes missing, Liberty, Vera, and O are taken into a video game she created where they will have to face each others secrets and mysterious history.
This book is a true emotional rollercoaster, but it's beautiful in every moment. O is left with no memories of what happened three years ago, or any time between then and now. Liberty and Vera remember it all, but the game forbids them from explaining any of it to O. As they reunite and go through the game together, the secrets and memories they tried to bury are revealed. It's hardly ever happy. Most of the things the game reveals are the hardest truths they could face, and any ability they had to hide them is taken. I was nearly brought to tears so many times in this story.
Though as hard and emotional as this story may be, there's a light within it that will capture the hearts of the readers. It's a journey of secrets and the things we hide, but it's a journey of discovery as well. There are discussions of race, gender, and understanding ourselves. It's looking at every moment, good and bad, and pushing through it all. The characters may struggle, but they find themselves in the end. They learn who they are, what they need to do, and, most of all, what hidden things they need to release to move on.
Readers will feel all the emotions of the story, and they'll feel like they're really there with the characters. Min's writing is incredibly atmospheric, sucking readers into a world they can see in great detail. I often feel like first-person point of view can limit the world-building, keeping us stuck in one characters head. This book, however, lets readers know everything, even as we stay with one character. You know the world and the characters and every little thing in between. It's never just the narrator who feels important.
Lio Min has created a stand-out 2025 release with The L.O.V.E. Club. With the exploration of grief and self understanding, and their addictively descriptive writing style, this is a story readers need to keep their eyes on. It's a story you'll never forget.
January 3, 2026
This was a very unique story and I loved the video game and botanical integration. It felt a bit heavy at times in the amount of descriptors and prose. I feel if it had been edited down 50-100 pages the impactful ending would've hit harder but regardless it didn't take away from the whimsy and wildly original plot.
Note: these chapters are LONG. It worked nicely for my commute because I could listen to a full chapter in the hour but I struggled when I switched to print.
Note: these chapters are LONG. It worked nicely for my commute because I could listen to a full chapter in the hour but I struggled when I switched to print.
October 5, 2025
This book was super intriguing! It was a little confusing at first, I had a lot of questions, but they ended up all getting answered in the end! It portrays a lot of difficult themes about girlhood, and shows really well how grief can affect people, especially friends. Super good read
April 3, 2026
Won this in a giveaway months ago and I'm kicking myself for not reading it sooner. It is so immersive! Reminds me so much of the underrated movie Sucker Punch. I highly recommend to anyone who has a deep love of immersive video games.
August 11, 2025
A gorgeous combination of complicated teenage friendship, hidden family secrets, and a game that will force everyone to come to terms with secrets they didn’t even know they had.
This is a book that uses the plot - three estranged friends reunite to play a game created by their missing fourth friend - to slowly unravel the truth about what happened all those years ago. Secrets are brought to the open, personal traumas are fought through, and eventually by the end everyone learns some truths that will change the rest of their lives.
This book was an emotional journey, and I absolutely wasn’t expecting to cry while I read it - but I did!
I would absolutely recommend this novel to anyone who likes stories that focus on friendships, hardships, and the strength of families we are born with and those we choose. Every character in this novel is unique and has their own hardships that they’re forced to live with - and while this friendship broke apart and ended, the only real villain of this narrative is intergenerational trauma.
A huge thank you to the author, Netgalley, and Flatiron Books for providing me a copy for review.
This is a book that uses the plot - three estranged friends reunite to play a game created by their missing fourth friend - to slowly unravel the truth about what happened all those years ago. Secrets are brought to the open, personal traumas are fought through, and eventually by the end everyone learns some truths that will change the rest of their lives.
This book was an emotional journey, and I absolutely wasn’t expecting to cry while I read it - but I did!
I would absolutely recommend this novel to anyone who likes stories that focus on friendships, hardships, and the strength of families we are born with and those we choose. Every character in this novel is unique and has their own hardships that they’re forced to live with - and while this friendship broke apart and ended, the only real villain of this narrative is intergenerational trauma.
A huge thank you to the author, Netgalley, and Flatiron Books for providing me a copy for review.
June 27, 2026
Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Flatiron Books for accepting my request for an ACR of this book!
2.75/5
“Four levels. Four bosses. Four stars. Four girls.”
Overall, the book did I really good job in really flushing out all the characters. The way that it also showed the group wasn’t the first generation was very interesting, but at the same time I felt it got crowded. There was just so many characters it was easy to care for some more than others. I partially didn’t enjoy the long chapters, because for me it made the story feel longer than it was. Overall, it was a very touching story, but I felt the pacing was slow.
2.75/5
“Four levels. Four bosses. Four stars. Four girls.”
Overall, the book did I really good job in really flushing out all the characters. The way that it also showed the group wasn’t the first generation was very interesting, but at the same time I felt it got crowded. There was just so many characters it was easy to care for some more than others. I partially didn’t enjoy the long chapters, because for me it made the story feel longer than it was. Overall, it was a very touching story, but I felt the pacing was slow.
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