antidietleah'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Medical content, Sexual content, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Hate crime and Vomit
Ibrookey8888's review
- 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
I cried multiple times and just felt for the characters. This story is so important to learn about what activist did for the queer community and how things have changed,but how much still needs to be done. I don’t know why I didn’t realize this might be sad when it’s set during the AIDS epidemic. I really liked our characters(for the most part). I just like the growth and courage they all had. The family relationships in this were so sweet for the most part. Now Art was not that likable at times which is the point, but it was so hard to read his POV sometimes(also he’s a teenager so it makes sense). I also didn’t really love the ending. It was bittersweet to me, but realistic.
Graphic: Islamophobia, Medical content, Death, Abandonment, Body shaming, Outing, Racism, Bullying, Fatphobia, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Suicide, and Violence
ranjanireviewsreads's review against another edition
Graphic: Homophobia, Bullying, Death of parent, Hate crime, Misogyny, Cursing, Medical content, Grief, Police brutality, and Death
mattyb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death of parent, Terminal illness, Grief, Death, Hate crime, and Homophobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Medical trauma, Bullying, Islamophobia, Medical content, Outing, Police brutality, and Sexual content
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Vomit, and Violence
m_hates_reading's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
A queer, first-love romance, but set in 1989 New York and based in the AIDS crisis - it’s one of the most moving books I’ve read. It’s been sat on my bookshelf since I originally came out in 2020, and I never bothered to read it until now. Im actually glad I didn’t read it when I first got it, bc I don’t think I would have been able to appreciate the imagery and symbolism as well.
Graphic: Violence, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Death of parent, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Outing, Police brutality, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Alcoholism
19becky97's review
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer
tahsintries's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Chronic illness, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Excrement, Hate crime, and Violence
Minor: Racism and Alcoholism
xoodlebooks's review
- 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
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, Death, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Xenophobia, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Medical content, Hate crime, Xenophobia, and Racism
Minor: Police brutality, Toxic relationship, Violence, Ableism, Vomit, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
achingallover's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Spoiler
I however didn't totally get why Judy was so angry with Art. I initially thought it was because she thought Reza and Art had been cheating on her together, and was a miscommunication. But Art hadn't acted on his feelings after Reza shut him down before his first date with Judy, so like, I really don't get that he'd done anything wrong? I understand the upset that Reza had used her in a way, but I don't see what Art had done that was so awful that she wouldn't speak to him for 6 months. Art was an interesting character, but could have done with some character development, and I'm not sure his POV added much given that he didn't seem to learn much throughout the book. I also didn't like how much pressure he put on Reza about sex, even whilst saying he wouldn't pressure him.Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Medical content, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, and Vomit
Minor: Alcoholism and Religious bigotry