Lio Min channels The Matrix in The L.O.V.E. Club, a genre-busting YA behemoth with elements of sci-fi, horror, soap opera, and action.
Liberty, O, Vera, and Elle, the titular L.O.V.E. Club, have been friends since third grade. The girls, who grew up feeling like outcasts in the upper-crusty Chinese community of Calendula, Calif., connected with each other playing video games in their middle school's abandoned Study Room L-7, their very own clubhouse. That is, until Elle mysteriously vanished the summer before freshman year, shattering the group. Liberty's and Vera's families not only moved away after Elle's disappearance, but they went radio silent, leaving O to navigate her grief alone. Then, as senior year begins, Vera and Liberty return. The first day back together is awkward, yet that evening all three separately sneak back into the middle school, drawn to the old clubhouse. One lonely computer sits there; a new game, seemingly created by Elle, is loaded, the text asking, "PLAY AGAIN?" With a single click, the three teens portal into a digital world where they must work together to reforge their relationship and battle bosses that take the shape of their personal struggles.
Min's writing is especially sharp, both mischievous and melodic--"I sort through the bouquet of emotions wilting in the vase of my chest"--which creates a dizzying, satisfying effect. Be warned though: with so many twists, turns and a scope that at times can become unwieldy, the dizzying effect is very real. Themes of generational trauma, abuse, race, gender identity, and more come together to make Min's sophomore effort a catharsis bomb for readers who are up for the challenge; an ouroboros of grief, memory, and, naturally, love. --Luis G. Rendon, freelance reviewer