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pearlmijohns's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
that being said i also thought that the portrayal of mental illness was stigmatising, & that the queer characters were presented in quite a homophobic and one dimensional way.
Moderate: Ableism, Homophobia, Rape, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
imds's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.25
Graphic: Ableism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Antisemitism
skudiklier's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Overall I liked this book. I knew absolutely nothing about it going in--not the premise, not the genre, nothing. I picked it solely based on the cover. Throughout the first half of it I just felt a sort of rising tension, as I waited for the shoe to drop. This book was well-written and while the ending devastated me, I don't think it should have been changed.
This book makes me want to read more by this author, because I really liked how well it showed tiny social things that feel hard to capture/explain but can make a real impact on how a situation feels or a relationship progresses. Small things that Jean worries over momentarily, that just felt really well-done.
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Sexual assault, and Abortion
Moderate: Infidelity, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Antisemitism, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Cancer, Incest, and Lesbophobia
shonagh_catherine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
The character studies and relationships are natural and drag the reader into the story with our emotions being strung along watching these relationships develop. The variety of mother-daughter relationships explored and ultimately juxtaposed are enlightening, reassuring, and somewhat familiar to read.
However, whilst I enjoyed large parts of this book I have some issues with how the plot developed: specificall I was uncomfortable with the use of and treatment of certain characters who represent some marginalised groups within society who eneded up used as plot devices and were treated somewhat distastefully.
As for the last chapter... well I think ultimately that chapter is open to what the reader brings to it - I would argue the reader is invited to write their own ending to the novel (whether it be optimistic or not.) That being said I appreciate the issues many readers have felt with the final chapter which nearly seems to swallow whole and distort the optimism of the previous chapter.
Overall the novel has some gorgeous prose, littered with delicate descriptions of domestic life and the importance of friendships especially for those who are isolated. However, the novel also has some harsh interjections of crule reality and it reminds the reader that there may be a more sinister side to life which I found jarring at times given the over all tone of the novel.
Minor: Ableism, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia
spookyaz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Minor: Ableism, Confinement, Death, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Abortion, and Alcohol
sara_olivia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Ableism, Death, and Rape
Minor: Antisemitism, Abortion, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
alisonannk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Graphic: Ableism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Moderate: Body shaming, Cancer, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Lesbophobia, Outing, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
cbrooks288's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Rape
sophie_kean's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
- The ending - I found unneccesary and frustrating alongside all the unfinished plotlines in the book
- All of it was pretty predictable
- I found most of the characters that we spent time with a bit dry (I would have loved it if we got some actual insight into
- The depiction of lesbians??? I mean. It had the potential to be such an interesting and exciting plot but it just became a brief, fairly tragic side plot with a good dose of stereotypical lesbian villainization.
- I did enjoy bits of it - I think it just wasn't the story I wanted to read. The story was set up with a really interesting premise and I had so much hope for the potential characters and relationships, but it just focused on the things that I a) don't care about b) have heard before or c) found offensive (and I don't think just because it's set/marketing itself as historical fiction)
- Other people seem to love it so I'm sure it was doing many things right (I enjoyed the writing, the characters at the start, moments of the mother/daughter relationship discourse) but there was too much that was predictable, dull and low-key offensive for me to properly enjoy it.
Graphic: Abortion
Moderate: Ableism, Rape, and Lesbophobia
mondayisms's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Moderate: Ableism, Rape, and Sexual violence