yunsq's reviews
147 reviews

Preliminary thoughts: I don’t think I’ve drafted more content warnings for any book than this one. A tense and very difficult read, which I felt like came into fruition and meaning in one way or another - unlike a lot of the other intense thrillers I’ve read where I ask myself all this pain and gory details for what. For whom? 

There’s meaning and purpose to The Last Housewife. And I hope more people read it and talk about it because the commentary on the patriarchy, the male gaze, issues of power reclaiming and consent around gender roles and sex… covered in this book isn’t fiction. It’s reality. Ah. I’m mindfucked. 

This is my second cult book, thank god it was because I’d have otherwise never noticed that

Don is a cult leader and that Shay and her friends were manipulated by him to stay

until wayyyy later into the book. I- argh. It’s so easy to linger in the dark and crouch in fear. It’s breaking into the light that’s easier said than done. 

I don’t think I’ve laughed this much in a romance!!!! Literally LOL (or Lots of Love). This book has the best banter (the text exchanges, oh ma lawd) I’ve read, granted I’m not the most prolific romance reader. Like, I want to flirt like this too?? I laughed with Sewanee, cried with her, pained with her, and loved Blah. It wasn't difficult at all to believe in the romance in this book; I bought the attraction and desire entirely, allowing me to sink into the world that the author built. 

Only marginally away from a full 5-star book because there were points that I thought dragged on for a bit too long (though I understand was for more tension to be built between the two characters), but I secretly wish they just GOT ON WITH IT. 

Accompany your reading experience with the audiobook, PLEASE !! And it was also such a fun and easy way to learn insights into the audiobook industry - I listen to A LOT of audiobooks, so I appreciated how the book went into detailing aspects of the industry I’d never have learned. 

Ah!! What a read.

Edge Case (which I’ve now learnt means an anomaly that appears when testing a tech product..?) tells the story of a Malaysian woman trying to prolong her time in the US as a legal residence. All of this alongside the relentless search for her grieving husband who left without a word. 

The story is as messy as Edwina, the main character, and the main character is as messy as the story (her life). But such is life, isn’t it? Of duality,  
mess, confusion, relentless fruitless pursuit? YZ Chin did a great job interweaving and layering childhood trauma, issues of gender, sexism in the tech industry, racism & xenophobia, marriage, self-image all into one character. Though sometimes hard to read, Edwina wasn’t cold, unfeeling and impossible to understand. I found the ending refreshing, and surprisingly not lost on me for how open-ended it is. 

I really enjoyed the writing, and must have obsessively highlighted huge chunks of texts every other page. Particularly the descriptions of Edwina’s new found eating habits and how they manifest in the body she’s taught to disassociate from and dislike. As readers, we watch her fall, literally, falter, waver, celebrate the smallest wins with caution and tiny doses of disbelief, navigate her relationship with her mum, grow completely honest with herself and more. 

Edge Case was a literary treat. And I think a mirror for introspection and reflection. 

My first cult fiction book - wooaawwhhh. 

My first read on my kobo and I breezed through it! 

Ah! Where do I begin. Aside from the joy and convenience the kobo has brought into my life, this book was a treat. I thought it was really well written for a escapist thriller and murder mystery, with thorough world-building and character development. Each character distinct, alive and believable. 

The vibes were 🧚‍♀️immaculate🧚‍♀️. My favourite were the food descriptions and Eleanor’s breakfast preps every morning. My favourite chapters were Robyn and Eleanor’s and my least favourite was Lexi’s. Ana and Fen’s chapters were the hardest to read.  The irony of not caring too much about the bride’s story when the entire mystery happens during a hen weekend. 

As the book progressed, it became harder to get through simply because I didn’t one any of them to be the person found dead. Perhaps because I devoured the book, but I had grown to liking them, which rarely happens to me in thrillers. 

Overall, a great read! I wish I read this on holiday. Would’ve been a great plane/airport read. But an off-day reading sprint isn’t too shabby either. 

Knocked off a star for the predictable ending; though it did make me teary-eyed!

Read content warnings first before reading the book!!

I am struggling to rate this one. Don’t get me wrong, I devoured the book in 3 days. The fastest I’ve read since I’ve gotten into a reading slump in the last months. I say struggle because of how dark, stomach-churning and unsettling the story is, and anxiety-inducing it was for me. 

Not to say that the ending was too open for my liking. I felt like I pulled through all of the front bits for no reward lol. Perhaps it was meant to replicate real life? Where there really isn’t a well-crafted ending?? Maybe we don’t really have to know how the couple would react to the news for us to acknowledge that evil exists? It also didn’t sit right with me that we quickly went from trauma-informed behaviour to born-evil conclusions. Could’ve been handled better and with more sensitivity, in my opinion. 

Another review mentioned how the world-building and some of the major events were contradicting throughout the multi-POV chapters, or even just completely forgotten. This I absolutely agree with. 

Overall, maybe a 3? I’m not really sure what to feel about it. Other than my lingering fear from the story maybe. 

White people suspense and drama!! Just the distraction I needed. I thought the epilogue was the best chapter out of all. 

A moving, hilarious, and incredibly human book. These weird, fire kids have my heart. I wish Lillian well 🫧