Reviews

This book was split into three different sections and each section belongs to a different book. The first section was what I expected based on the description and the first two books. The second section is full of family pain, abuse, trauma, gaslighting, and more - it had nothing to do with the couple. The third section goes over a long period of time but has extremely short chapters that barely skim the surface of what the characters are experiencing. It was as if the last third book needed to be written and this was the quickest way to wrap it all up.

The author's note provides a lot of clarity on how the book came to be and I feel empathy for what Helen Hoang had to go through in her own life. However, her memoir should have been separated from this book.

bree1's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring tense 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

4.5

shermreads's review against another edition

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3.0

an incredibly sweet read & Quan and Anna deserve all the best things in this word but my god that was an unexpected and super drastic tone shift!

also, the plot line was so specific that it felt almost personal to the author (and by extension, not super relatable) but can’t fault it for that at all — the contemporary romance genre always tends to lean on making plots/situations storylines as relatable as possible. it was really interesting to see an author subvert that to talk about discovering a disability later in life/ the struggle of being made a caregiver/ filial piety in Asian families (+ expectations of filial piety with autism).

hercuriousmind's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring fast-paced

bbrreenna's review against another edition

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5.0

Writing a review about this book just seems weird. This book made me feel more than any book I’ve read in a long time and trying to summarize all of that just doesn’t seem feasible.

Now, as other reviews tell you, not all these feelings were warm and nice, but feelings don’t have to be good to be important. Regardless of whether or not you face the exact same circumstances as the MC, I think this is a beautiful telling of a woman’s journey to find what it truly mean to be herself and overcome (well, begin to overcome) imposter syndrome.

I highly recommend this book.

cniday's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

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