daisyfont's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, I'll still be thinking about Sam, Sadie and Marx and I'll still be loving this book.
Moderate: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, Car accident, Violence, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer
5aru's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
My biggest gripe with this one was in fact the writing style. It read impressively lyrical at times and clunky at others; overly informational in its cultural references (it ought to be an "either you get it or you don't" type thing imo); and Zevin resorted to overly complex words when it made little sense as an aesthetic choice in-context, when simpler concepts would likely have worked better. It makes the work read childish and even trite at times, despite the nuance it condenses.
Spoiler
I am also upset at Marx's death and it's difficult for me to say whether it's for legitimate reasons (I'm bothered by the cliché of it, the deus-ex-machina of it) or simply because it made me real damn sad.Graphic: Hate crime, Grief, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Gun violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Car accident
Moderate: Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, and Misogyny
Minor: Racism, Racial slurs, and Cancer
cytokine_storm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Grief, Murder, Blood, Cancer, Car accident, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit
hgunsch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Pregnancy, Gun violence, and Abortion
kiwij96's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
It is very character-led, and at times the paragraphs jump time to speed up the plot without missing any information. That is, of course, unless something becomes relevant later on and a quick history is fleshed out in full, (imo this often feels like it is disrupting the flow of the present) but this rarely happens.
My main issues with this book:
- The amount of times the word "said" is used during dialogue.
- Part 1 and Part 9 in their entirety. These parts feel clunky to me, but they are also important to the story.
- Dov, just as a person, I understand his importance as a character. But honestly, I hate him.
- The slight sexualisation of both Zoe and Sadie. Why was it their clothing that got highlighted and never the men?
- At times the timeline of the story felt off and I didn't know where I was sometimes in relation to it.
However, I loved that these characters were allowed to be human - they were selfish, determined and frustrating at times. But they were realistic characters who experienced real life issues.
Just please to god check your content warnings before going into this because ooft.
Spoiler
Marx and Sadie both deserved better and I will die mad about itGraphic: Mental illness, Vomit, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicide, Cancer, Car accident, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Racial slurs, Abortion, Homophobia, Cursing, Drug use, Gun violence, and Pregnancy
theabee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Misogyny, and Death
Moderate: Pregnancy, Sexism, Gore, and Vomit
kirareadssometimes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Sexual violence, Medical content, Gun violence, Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Emotional abuse, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Sexism, Pregnancy, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Car accident
Minor: Abortion
eleek0609's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Medical content, Alcohol, Mass/school shootings, Suicide, Sexual content, Grief, Death, Cursing, Cancer, Drug use, Death of parent, Vomit, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Gun violence
vistacanas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
“The way to turn an ex-lover into a friend is to never stop loving them, to know that when one phase of a relationship ends it can transform into something else. It is to acknowledge that love is both a constant and a variable at the same time.”
This book was NOT what I expected…which, in this case, was a pleasant surprise. It’s like the lite version of A Little Life. Despite the fact that I’ve never been into video games whatsoever, it kept me surprisingly engaged. It was a quick read, but the last fifth of it dragged a bit.
The story is totally character driven; most of the characters are really well-developed and very human (meaning not always likable). Like A Little Life, it’s primarily about inner strife and intimate friendships and romantic relationships.
Although I predicted part of what happened, it mostly kept me guessing…NOT an easy feat these days.
I did get mildly annoyed by the author’s “woke” references throughout…definitely a sign of the times. I don’t have an issue with being woke, it just wasn’t organic or subtle.
If you’re into emotional fiction about relationships, this is a very well-written book to add to your list!
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Medical trauma, Gun violence, Grief, Death of parent, Death, Car accident, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Racism, Pregnancy, and Cultural appropriation
Minor: Abortion and Cancer
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Racism, Car accident, Sexism, Gun violence, Suicide, Mass/school shootings, Vomit, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Homophobia, Antisemitism, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Ableism, and Abortion
Minor: Eating disorder, Sexual content, Classism, and Cancer
I really wish we had some different content warnings - this book contains homophobic slurs, BDSM as a tool of abuse, and a student/professor relationship where both parties are adults.