After finishing this book I needed a couple of hours to process my thoughts into one cohesive review.
I think this book will be very divisive. People will either really love it or really hate it.
I loved this book. June is a character you love to hate and someone you want the absolute worst for. Warning, June doesn’t learn, theirs no growth, no acceptance, no understanding of how her actions have consequences.
I saw Junes character as a personification of the industry itself. It will defend itself and reimagine its motives even when confronted with its own truth. The industry as a whole will never take responsibility because the industry is not a person, it’s a million people upholding a million lies. June’s character shows the worst in an industry and it’s lack of remorse. When you put everything June has done side by side you think to yourself “this is crazy, no one would be this cruel” but if you look at her actions individually: people have always plagiarized other people work and gotten away with it, if not even celebrated for that work years later. People have pretended to be a certain ethnicity to sell themselves and their projects. People have said racist, homophobic, transphobic problematic things and still survive in the industry. People get cancelled and uncanceled, torn down then applauded for doing the bare minimum everyday. Junes character is all those things in one person. She represents everything this industry upholds and allows.
I loved Athena’s character, she was only shown through the eyes of others and were never quite sure what’s real or not. She was the most interesting and well rounded character and I always found myself second guessing anything that was said about her. We never got to know the true her only the imagined version of her. And I think that represents celebrity culture and this parasocial relationship we have with authors. Making judgments based on the one encounter we had or friend of a friend encounters. We don’t know Athena but I wish I did.
As I mentioned above I think some people won’t get this book, as we get into the second half it’s definitely more stream of consciousness then the structured story we were starting with. I think that shows how unhinged June is becoming by the end of her story. She was always a little disconnected from reality but by the end completely comes undone.
It was satirical and funny, and I found myself laughing out loud at certain points, cringing most of the time and wanting to throw my book at the wall at everything June thought or said.

Very meta, very harsh, and very smart. Yellowface absolutely eviscerates the publishing industry in a way that makes me want to give up on my author dreams and go hide in a corner--or better yet, delete Twitter and retreat to the woods. Despite not having much of an actual plot and a despicable narrator, this book was really hard to put down--the voice was so gripping (and honestly, it's super impressive that Kuang managed to even craft any sort of compelling plot out of the publishing timeline). Definitely worth a read!

RFK is so, so good at relentlessly letting characters face consequences. She's never going to pull a deus ex machina on you or write anything less than excruciating. I do think Yellowface should have been a writing exercise for her, but I was compelled the entire 2 hours it took me to slurp it. For better or worse, it's the eerie equivalent of reading booktwt (and bookstagram and book tumblr and la review of books and andrea long chu takedowns and and and and), and it scratches the itch of submerging yourself in hyperspecific online spectacle. It felt like a coke wormhole of YA author drama. Do I think she made the most subtlety scathing critique of racism in the publishing industry ever? Not particularly, but I don't care because she's so talented at representing the stupid intricacies of being online in 2023. Again, I'm in the position of defending RFK against accusations of a lack of nuance - I really think people get upset when her characters are too self-aware or (in this case) absurdly UNself-aware of racism. Yellowface isn't a mystery novel (it's probably at its weakest when it's trying to be); it's not bad that the ultimate critique is clear from the start. The devolution of June is more about evoking an affect of discomfort, rather than revealing some unexpected truth about racism. Delving even deeper, it's both brilliant and annoying that she self-parodies with Athena's lust for vicarious trauma, and I would have loved even more exploration of the relationship between her and June.

Of course this is a great book. Of course R. F. Kuang's writing is as engaging and immersive as ever, even when she's stuck us in the head of a privileged, racist, self-deluded white narrator. This is scathing, needed satire about cultural appropriation and more, and I'm so glad it's going to be huge.

I want to thank RF Kuang's team for giving me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Yellowface is RFK' take on the publishing industry guise as a drama & a satire book. June
watched her famous author "friend" die in an accident and stole her novel to publish as her own.

Summarizing this book review in three points without spoiling anything for you:
1. plot - I personally felt that this kind of drama & narrative is Rebecca's way of coming out of her bubble. I mean no swords & daggers you know? Just a book with real people dealing with mundane issues about the publishing company-- exposing the nitty gritty details of how hard it is to publish, market, sell your book, and most importantly, to thrive in the setting. Every time Goodreads & Twitter are mentioned in the texts, it felt like Rebecca & I shared some kind of inside joke lol If you're a bookworm, it wouldn't be difficult to grasp the concept of the publishing world. To be honest, reading this book felt like a heavy veil has been lifted and it exposed the publishing world for what it really is-- just not all rainbows & cotton candies.

2. characters Contrary to the Poppy War trilogy where we have been exposed to a lot of characters, Yellowface only has a few. First, Athena Liu- the famous Asian author/friend of June Hayward. Second, June Hayward and some publishing company characters. Yellowface is June Hayward's narrative- of how she witnessed the "accident" up to the things she had to do to climb the literary world's ladder. Juniper Hayward was a jealous, racist woman who tries to justify her actions JUST BECAUSE she was white. I assure you that reading this would give you mixed emotions about rivalry, friendship, jealousy, etc.

3. theme Let's face it.. Yellowface is Rebecca's commentary on the publishing world. And as much as I find it really interesting, I also love her takes on racism discussed all throughout the book. But you know what's more interesting? It's kind of fucked up whenever Athena's ghost haunts June's narrative -- from her works, thru flashbacks, and in the latter part of the book, thru flesh.

I kind of had high expectations with how this story ends but I'd give it a solid 3.5 (just the ending) just because I know it's a very antagonist thing to do especially with the "The truth is fluid. There is always another way to spin the story, another wrench to throw into the narrative." June's trying to distort everything and I hate that of her but I sure love it for the plot.

CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU GUYS TO READ THIS ON MAY 2023!

No one writes morally gray like R. F Kuang. This book is definitely for the niche publishing industry nerds, but it has enough information to not only inform the unknowing, but also capture and keep the ones who picked this up due to loving R. F Kuang. I appreciate how she was able to take these modern controversies and straight up not only address them, but get it published in a fiction novel that only just adds to the story. This story blew my mind and I was unable to put it down until the ride was done, if you had any qualms about preordering or seeing what other people had to say, don't. It is AMAZING.

Really enjoyed this as an inside look into the world of publishing, in all its biased, racist truth. This is a book that could only have been written by Kuang, as a publishing industry wunderkind who has also been outspoken about the racism she's experienced. A lot of this book reminded me of her speech at the 2020 Hugo Awards (where, notably, George R.R. Martin mispronounced her last name while presenting her with an award).

People have criticized RF Kuang's writing in TPW trilogy and Babel for a lack of nuance/a tendency to hit readers over the head with her themes and messages. I tend to agree, and I think that problem (if you see it as a problem) persists here as well.

I loved this book! I will definitely recommend it. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

A scathing story of the publishing world following June Hayward, a novice author trying to find her big break when her peer and best-selling author, Athena, dies while they celebrate Athena's latest Netflix deal. After all is said and done and June is reeling from the shock of it all back in her apartment, she is holding Athena's unpublished manuscript for her next book.. This could be exactly what June has been waiting for, her big break.

When I finished this book, I stared at the wall for several minutes. It follows June, a largely unsuccessful author and white woman, after she witnesses the death of her friend Athena (a bestselling Asian author) and steals her newly completed book manuscript. She publishes the book under a new pseudonym and slowly descends into madness, really. I found the book to be well written, engaging, and an incredible critique on the relationship between race and the publishing industry. I can't say I found reading it to be enjoyable, but I think some of the best reading experiences are ones that make you stop and think, and this one left me feeling short-circuited.

Utterly brilliant. It’s been about 5 seconds since I finished reading this and I am in an infatuated daze.

RF Kuang knows exactly how to emphasize your own emotions and unconscious biases via her writing. I found myself, at moments, sympathizing with the arrogant, narcissistic main character — and a moment later, when I’d notice this, I’d be absolutely revolted with myself. It so beautifully and clearly shows how our society forgives and forgives and forgives select races (i.e white people). It exposes the horrors of the publishing industry. And, all in all, it slaps you in the face with every toxic trait of the modern day world.

I’m the first to admit that there is a lot I don’t know, having grown up learning a very whitewashed version of history, and a lot that I continue to learn; but, RF Kuang is a masterful teacher and this book was nothing short of excellent.

Thank you HarperCollins Canada for the arc in exchange for an honest review (and congrats on the ratified contract!!!)

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow! Due to spoilers a link to my review is posted below from Goodreads.

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I finished it a few days ago and reflected on this book. There are a few things I loved and a few things I didn't.

I loved Kuang's writing. It felt nuanced and punchy. I love that she's experimenting with a genre that isn't fantasy. I thought this book is timely with everything happening in the publishing world, the nonstop drama with Book Twitter/BookTok, and racism within these worlds.

I didn't particularly like that the book was dominated by the re-hashing of the social media drama happening with the main character, June. The repetitiveness of it got a little boring.

I am looking forward to reading more novels by R.F. Kuang.

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the e-galley.

What an absolutely stunning book! A combination thriller/behind-the-scenes look at the publishing industry that will make you think twice before querying your first novel in hopes of catching the eye of the Big Five, or Four, or whatever it is this year. I read it in two sittings, and only because the first sitting ended after the sun came up.

I gave this one a chance despite not being at all a fan of Babel, and boy I should not have. The same style persists here that did in Babel: RF Kuang's complete lack of trust in her reader's intelligence and ability to form opinions without being instructed in what they should be.

I do not like being bashed over the head with obvious themes, which happens in Yellowface just as it did in Babel. I personally value nuance in my fiction, and Kuang clearly does not believe there should be any. Intelligence and education alone do not a writer make — I will not be reading any further RF Kuang, but I wish her readers the best. I also wish them other authors to fawn over.

Very different from R. F. Kuang’s previous works but brilliant nonetheless, Yellowface really solidified her as one of my autobuy authors. This was so compulsively readable, a meltdown you can’t look away from as well as an insightful critique of the publishing industry. Also the cyclical nature of bookish discourse made some of this SO funny.

1.5/5 ⭐️

ARC provided by the publisher Harper Collins Canada through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Yellowface is a fearless and unhinged exposé of the publishing industry through the lens of a controversial character that fails to conceal R. F. Kuang's inner voice that holds readers in a chokehold with no room for nuance.

R. F. Kuang is one of the most celebrated authors ever since the release of their award winning adult fantasy trilogy, The Poppy War, that weaves history into fantasy that isn't shy in showing the horrible crimes of war, politics, sacrifice for the greater good of freedom and revolution. In August of 2022 R. F. Kuang is set to release a dark academia adult fantasy standalone titled Babel that have received raving reviews before its release and multiple limited editions of the book. This is proof of RFK's hype and brightest example in their ability to write books that can sell, high quality backed up with amazing research, and favoured by the general public not only in the fantasy sphere.

Personally, I have read the first two books in The Poppy War trilogy and I have to admit the second made me turn my back on the series as a whole. I haven't read Babel just yet (which I am planning on reading in October) hence I haven't seen RFK's growth in writing fantasy. Instead I decided to pick up Yellowface since it is available for me to access and because I have heard enough opinion from fellow reviewers that have loved Babel reading this book then hating it. I would like to make it clear before I go into my review that I am wary of RFK's writing in general because there are certain aspects in their story telling that does not align with my taste of reading. These aspects usually has something to do with the characters and writing style.

Yellowface is a literary fiction mystery thriller about a mid tier white author, June Hayward, that steals the manuscript of a best selling Chinese-American author, Athena Liu, that died. This is not a spoiler because it is in the synopsis and it is established in the first chapter. June and Athena knew each other from their university days and throughout their life they are parallels of each other.
Both are from the same major and both have dreams of becoming an author. While June's path is full of trial and tribulations while Athena's path is the epitome of success from the very first book she published. Jealousy and envy is has always sinked it's teeth into June's life seeing how Athena harvests all the Ws while she just keeps getting Ls. When the opportunity presents itself in the most outrageous way June does the unthinkable and down right malicious. Taking Athena's manuscripts rewriting it then publishing it as hers.

Starting with the positive RFK isn't afraid to lay out the cold hard truth of the publishing industry that she first handedly experienced being an author herself. RFK knows the dirty laundry when it comes to publishing a book as an author, especially an author of colour. This unflinching raw writing style is distinct to what I deem as RFK's style. It is addictive, fast paced, and hard to put down. Readers can immediately get pulled into the story and immersed fully. The depth of the story is also due to RFK's ability to present her research packaging it in an entertaining narrative. I want to applaud RFK for writing a book that is readable, accessible, and without the pretentious notes of a literary fiction novel.

Sadly, that is the only positive I got for this book. A fast paced and easily accessible doesn't mean it is a good book for me. These are the kinds of books I would feel wary about rating it after. I had to reflect for a couple of days to finally realize that this book is shocking but not the good kind of shocking due to a few factors. In my lifetime I haven't read a lot of literary fiction books but I recently have picked up more books in this genre.

June Hayward is the main character of this story and any reader will hate June from start to end (at least I did). June as a character goes through many mental gymnastics to justify the horrible decisions throughout the book. She digs the hole deeper and deeper as the story progresses up until the climax that pushes her even further into gaslight, gatekeep, and girlboss-sociopath area. As a reader, I don't mind a character that is unlikeable through and through but the intent needs to be clear all the while complex. June seems to check all the boxes for a unlikeable character, the blue print is there and RFK made June's change a gradual ascent to crazy. Yet that is all there is to it for June.

This might be a bit abstract and quite reaching, throughout my reading experience it felt as though there is immense pressure to crucify June. It is a though RFK keeps on presenting proof or campaigning for readers to hate on June. As a reader I had zero chance to process and judge for myself the character because of how heavy handed RFK went for June. So, the conclusion is pretty fixed, "We hate June" or "We hate people like June". Which makes it hard for me to discern is this my own thoughts or is it RFK's? Is this what is to be expected from reading this book? A straight to the point delivery of facts with no nuance nor a chance to discuss anything about the story. I feel like it's no difference from delivering a clear cut news flash. There is no court of public opinion, it's just is from a story stand point.

Reading Yellowface from start to end June's situation is an extreme example of certain real life cases in publishing. The lengths she took can be said shocking and unhinged that gradually worsens the deeper she buries herself into her lies. Separating June from the story helped me to understand the story fully to find the essence of Yellowface such as themes and discussions that RFK wants to convey into this book. Which are racism within the publishing industry, white privilege, white women tears, and so on. It is clear that RFK features racism into all of her books and isn't shy about it either. Props to her for that but in this book I'm not sure that it was presented well enough to fit the literary fiction angle. There was no finesse or nuance in the writing and delivery at all.

Final thoughts, Yellowface is probably RFK's worst book for me. It lacked many things that I look for in literary fiction such as nuance, finesse, and complexities in the characters. When I read The Poppy War I admire RFK's guts as a writer, her raw unflinching prose, and overall incorporation of history into the story. Yellowface had none of the things I admired in RFK. For fans of RFK that likes her fantasy books I would advise you to proceed with absolute caution and be ready to be disappointed. I would like to remind anyone reading this review that this is my opinion and I am just one of thousands of reviewers on this planet. I'm sure once this book is published many readers will like it or some may agree with me, who knows? Reading is subjective from person to person.

The quotes in this review were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

Athena Liu is a literary darling. June Hayward is a nobody. But when June witnesses Athena dying in front of her eyes, she decides to steal Athena’s unfinished manuscript and claim it as her own.

Wouldn’t her late friend be so grateful that her story sees the light of day?
Doesn’t this story deserve to be told?
Just how far will June go?

I’ve never read anything by R.F Kuang before so I had no expectations whatsoever. But wow, this was a very interesting read. A pure satire. But also a fast-paced and thrilling one. Yellowface gave us a closer look at the publishing industry. So much drama and what goes behind the curtains were spilled. In fact, it feels kind of strange to write this as an online book reviewer and be part of the whole writing and publishing business. The author cleverly tackles the issues of racism and reverse racism, cultural appropriation, cancel culture, and how quickly the internet decides one’s fate and how quickly fame fades away.

Such a brilliant and relevant book in today’s world, one of an outrageous pace of change. I finished this book within a few days and I think you will want to check this one out.

-Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for an honest review.-

Yellowface centers on June Hayward, who after witnessing publishing's literary powerhouse, Athena Liu, die in front of her, steals the manuscript Athena was working on. She then edits the book and passes it off as her own. This book is a wild ride from start to finish. All I could think throughout the book was: June really has the audacity. Yellowface offers such an interesting look behind the scenes of publishing. It is very clear that R.F. Kuang pulled directly from her experiences and those of her friends who are also authors to write this book. If you're looking for a book that will start a conversation, look no further than Yellowface. I couldn't put this book down. R.F. Kuang skillfully jumps among different genres and I simply have to give her snaps.

I loved this book. It pulled me out of my reading slump a little bit! I haven't read a book in so long that I was actually excited to pick it up every time I had a spare moment to read.

The only book I've read by RF Kuang was Babel, and I only made it about 25% through before DNFing, not because I hated it but because it was so intimidating and was taking me forever to read. This book was actually a bit more digestible, which I really loved.

I honestly don't know what else to say except that it was an excellent commentary on the book publishing community, the issue of white authors writing stories about non-white people, cancel culture, and being desperate for fame and connection.

I learned so much about book publishing, and it made me wonder how much of it RF Kuang has experienced herself.

My one issue with this book is the lack of characterization of the main character, June. June serves to represent those obsessed with fame, who are willing to do anything to have people talking about them. She represents the clueless mildly racist (but actually really racist) individuals who are "woke" until they feel threatened. But besides that, we don't know much about June. She has no friends, hobbies (besides writing, of course), interests, romantic life. She is so pathetic that it almost doesn't seem real.

I will say that even though June didn't seem like a real person, RF Kuang did a great job at making me want to scream at June half the time, and actually making me feel bad for June the other half of the time. We really get to see the perspective of someone who has been cancelled, who is cut off from society because of a mistake (or in June's case, a series of mistakes), and what that can do to your mental health.

In the end, the book started to remind me of Girl Crush by Florence Given because of the themes of going crazy and Internet fame. I really enjoyed that book, so I enjoyed that element in this book!

As for the ending, <spoiler> I was at first really upset about it. I thought June was going to learn something, maybe make a grand apology online and people would forgive her. But instead, she continues to do the same thing, twisting stories, lying to make herself look like the better person. But, the more I think about it, the more I like the ending! It represents the cyclical nature of the social media news cycle and cancel culture. I actually thought it was very smart! </spoiler>