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maddieframe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Sexual violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Abortion, and Toxic friendship
dannothedino'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
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Child death, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Abortion, Cultural appropriation, and Abandonment
kaimetcalfe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Hate crime, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, and Cultural appropriation
skudiklier'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
I don't spoil anything directly, but if you're worried about spoilers, you might want to skip the next three paragraphs. The final three paragraphs don't have any spoilers.
A weird thing about my experience of reading this book was that by the time I was halfway through, it felt like I'd read an entire book--like maybe it should be done already. And I want to be clear I don't mean that in a bad way, like the book felt too long or had poor pacing. It just felt like some books could have ended it there, and been interesting and relatively satisfying overall.
But because I knew I was only halfway through, I started getting worried: yes, this book had complicated relationships, and things that frustrated me, and heartbreaking tragedies. But what if something even worse was going to happen? What if this book was actually devastating, and I just didn't know it yet?
Reader, this book was devastating. My intuition was right, but I had no idea what was going to happen until it was too late. I sobbed through a large section of this book, and was teary-eyed through the whole rest of it, all the way until the end. I already liked this book, and felt it was emotionally deep and moving, but then it just absolutely gutted me.
This book was moving in so many ways. Emotionally, the characters and their relationships are so rich and real and complicated and messy. No one is perfectly likable all the time, and you're not on one character's side the whole way through. But also creatively, this book was so inspiring. I don't play a lot of video games, and know very little about making them, but I do write poetry. At one point I had to stop writing to frantically write down an idea--I'd been waiting for a breakthrough epiphany about something for over a year, and this book finally helped me crack it open, at least a little.
The quotes I pulled from this book to save for later are gorgeous, and the writing is superb. I love the way the book plays with time, and how the future is so casually and distressingly referenced. In a way, it lulled me into thinking I knew what was coming, without ever revealing the worst part.
I tore my way through this book, and basically spent a whole weekend in this world. I'm so grateful to Netgalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the chance to read and review this ARC.
Graphic: Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Vomit, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Eating disorder, and Abortion