Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

35 reviews

ornamentalhermit's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

A really fun read that tackled some serious issues well. It was great how fleshed out and flawed the characters were.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

trish_reading12's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Gorgeous book about the importance of human relationships and human connections. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Vomit

gabyisafreeelf's review against another edition

funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

Moderate: Cancer

Minor: Fatphobia

bessadams's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia

serene216's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

emmacarroll27's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Cancer, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

pianokeys's review against another edition

emotional funny inspiring mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship

yesdnil's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• 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

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting is a light-hearted read that seamlessly intertwines the lives of 6 commuters through alternating perspectives. I normally do not enjoy books that cycle through narrators (i.e. it can be hard to constantly shift between voices/perspectives as a reader), but the author does a good job of developing distinctive voices among the characters. The book covers a lot of relatable topics including ageism, sexism, toxic relationships, mental health, job loss, work stress, bullying, and illness, but still manages to maintain a hopeful tone.

One could also say the book borders on saccharine or after-school-special-y, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself the entire time and was invested in the characters' outcomes. Sometimes you just need a reminder that the people around us are wonderfully complex, life can turn out in surprising ways, and maybe optimism isn't a "nice to have" personality trait, but necessary for survival. 

Lastly, Iona was a wonderfully eccentric main character to have the narrative develop from. I'd love to read a prequel about her and Bea's relationship.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

One of the characters, Piers, briefly considers jumping off a train platform to end his life, but is stopped by another character, Martha.

booksandbabble's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Lesbophobia

Moderate: Bullying and Cancer

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Vomit

daniellekat's review against another edition

funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Cute but too long winded. This was great as an audiobook, the narrator did an excellent job with all the characters. I typically love books with the "a bunch of strangers realize they have more in common than meets the eye" plot line, but I found the writing here a bit heavy handed. I missed the nuance of the characters getting into each others stories and felt like the author sped through the first half, then dragged the rest of the book out unnecessarily.

Some might enjoy a good HEA, but I found that this lacked conflict and consequences. There were no moments where I felt anxious for any of the characters or their outcomes.

Overall, this was a solid feel good book but was too slow paced.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Lesbophobia

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Medical content, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

ageism