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Ophelia After All

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I think it’s a surefire way to guarantee you’ll be going stag,” Linds teases. Sammie and Wesley both visibly stiffen. She clears her throat and bites another carrot. There’s no shoulds or shouldn’ts here,” he says. “You don’t have to label yourself as anything until you’re ready. Or ever, if you don’t want to.” A sweet and tender ode to love and self-discovery. Racquel Marie's vibrant and insightful prose, and fresh, funny, fearlessly vulnerable characters make for a beautiful debut you won't want to miss. Ophelia After All is utterly lovely." —Courtney Summers, New York Times-bestselling author of Sadie ophelia rojas knows who she is—mixed irish-cuban, rose gardener, floral wearer, boy-crazy. with prom and graduation coming up, she’s surrounded by people who also know exactly who she is. but when she starts thinking about a girl the way she’s always thought about boys….change might be coming when she least expects it.

I just wish the story had focused less on the drama and fights between Ophelia’s ‘friends’. Her best friend in particular is done a bit of a disservice as his character seems reduced to him taunting his love rival. But I did appreciate how inclusive this group was. I would have liked for them to have more distinctive personalities (rather than a few chosen traits) but it isn’t that kind of novel so it worked all the same.The writing is really good. The prose is tender and accessible. I listened to the audiobook which is absolutely mind blowing. The narrator does an amazing job of bringing life into the characters. I would highly recommend both the book and the audiobook versions. No one said you couldn’t join senior council on your own, Ags,” I reply. Lindsay nods in agreement. It’s a tragic cliché! It’s like the school wants us to spike the punch bowl and lose our virginities in a limo,” Ags huffs. While Ophelia After All wasn’t quite the cute & wholesome read I wanted it to be it still made for a better than okay read. The in-group drama, avoidable miscommunication, and one too many love triangles detracted from an otherwise compelling coming-of-age. If you are reading this expecting it to be a HEA romance, I recommend you adjust your expectations as Ophelia After All was more focused on Ophelia’s character arc and her coming to terms with her sexuality. If I could read only one thing for the rest of my life it would be queer coming-of-age stories written by queer authors. Something about them just hit the nail in the head for me, and Ophelia After All was no exception. It is a beautiful exploration of queerness, allowing yourself to change and everything that comes with discovering your sexuality. This is the type of book that every questioning teen can see themselves in, and that alone is a win in my book.

The storytelling is so organic and just so real. I loved Ophelia so much; so many of her thoughts will resonate with readers and the emotional journey that we go on with her is truly splendid and satisfying. I know that I'll be holding this book close to my heart for a long time. It was wholesome, emotional and heartbreaking at once. While some of the discussions did feel a tad too American for my liking in that they simplified certain issues (i can’t explain but if you know you know), I did enjoy Ophelia reflections of Lacan and the nature of desire. I loved Ophelia's growth throughout the novel. Her journey reminded me a lot of my own experiences, so it was heartwarming to see her embracing herself little by little. Raquel does an exceptional job making her main character reliable while at the same time keeping her realistic. Change is inevitable in life. You can't stay the same throughout your whole life. But we have to admit that changes are scary. We all, at some points of our lives, wonder if our loved ones would accept our changes, whether they would love the "new us" all the same. "Ophelia After All" says with so much gentleness and love - it’s okay to change, it’s okay to be unsure about who you are. The people who truly love you will always stay by your side, no matter what.While there was so much good here, there were a few newbie bumps. Honestly, if Marie is already writing this good now, it makes me super excited for what it to come. Anyway, one slight issue I had was I felt like the book was a tad off to have taken place in 2022. It doesn’t feel dated per say, but I felt it would have been a better fit if this book’s setting had taken place even just five years ago. I felt like some of the terms and just certain things the main character didn’t know felt off to me. Again, if it was a handful of years ago I would have understood, but teenagers now are so much more knowledgeable about sexuality and gender than my generation ever was. I thought all the rep in this book was great, including all the different types of queer characters and some we don’t get to see in books as much, so I don’t want to take away from that. I just felt like our main character was more clueless than she should have been to have this book take place in 2022.

I loved the way the author handled Ophelia's sexuality crisis. The author shows how it's a messy, non-linear process that doesn't always have stereotypical journeys and outcomes. Ophelia spends a lot of time bonding with and learning the stories of Queer people in & associated with people in her life, which creates a support system many do not have during the questioning phase, which I loved to read. So when she finds herself thinking more about cute, quiet Talia Sanchez than the loss of a perfect prom with her ex-boyfriend, seeds of doubt take root in Ophelia’s firm image of herself. Add to that the impending end of high school and the fracturing of her once-solid friend group, and things are spiraling a little out of control. But the course of love—and sexuality—never did run smooth. As her secrets begin to unravel, Ophelia must make a choice between clinging to the fantasy version of herself she’s always imagined or upending everyone’s expectations to rediscover who she really is, after all. Ophelia's friends were adorable, sometimes annoying and honestly just like a group of friends shortly before their graduation would behave. It was realistic and I think teens will relate to their drama, heartbreak and (not always successful) attempts to finish this chapter of their lives harmoniously. everything will be different in a few months. the. what’ll i have, who will i be? this is the one thing that i can control, the one thing that doesn’t have to change.”

At the core, Ophelia After All centers around prom. But what leads up to it is a mix of merging friend groups, a love triangle and the conversations surrounding the different places these characters will be quite soon. The tide of change that hits these group of friends and their fallouts with Ophelia at the center never feels overdone or some event just to further the plot in a contemporary novel. Ophelia Rojas knows what she likes: her best friends, Cuban food, rose-gardening, and boys - way too many boys. Her friends and parents make fun of her endless stream of crushes, but Ophelia is a romantic at heart. She couldn't change, even if she wanted to.

It's also a love letter to those who are queer and those who are still figuring it out. That it's okay to not have it all figured out, that it's okay to simply be. This book made me laugh out loud. This book made me cry. It had me on my toes. It broke me apart then gradually sewed up the broken pieces together again. In a word, reading this book, was an amazing experience. Ophelia’s story definitely moved the recently-turned-adult-me to tears. It’s written in such a raw, heartfelt manner that I had no other choice actually. There’s the feel good contemporaries and there are contemporaries like this… that just get you, that deeply resonate with you, that bring light to feelings within you that you didn’t know existed. A fantastic debut, Ophelia After All is an honest love letter to all confused, questioning queer kids. It assures us of the inevitability of change and reminds us that the love we receive gives us the strength to be true to ourselves. Its a book that made me cry under the intensity of emotions but soothed me throughout and I hope its the same for you.

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and ophelia’s hopelessly romantic outlook on life. how she falls in love fast fully. how she gives her heart away to those who don’t see the gift that it is. it was how i too used to see the world.

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