Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

403 reviews

caitlynburns2007's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Infertility, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

seventhswan's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

Hot take, definitely never posted by anyone before: Sally Rooney is an excellent writer. Her observational and descriptive skills are really like no-one else, and Conversations with Friends was no exception - I didn't want to put this book down, and got the same sense of being acutely seen that I always do from her writing. 

That said, this was definitely my least-favourite book of Rooney's three currently-published novels. In Normal People and Beautiful World, I liked or at least sympathised with the main characters; here I spent most of the book actively hating them, and Frances' voice grated on me throughout. This still represents considerable skill in writing, and I'm not averse to an unlikeable narrator in the slightest, but it did weaken my emotional investment in most of the story.

Or so I thought, until I got to the final chapter, and promptly threw the book at the wall, which is not something I believed people actually did until now. Have I been Frances? Absolutely! Did that make me want to give her head a wobble any less? Absolutely not!

Overall, then, I wouldn't say I enjoyed CwF in the same way that I got genuine delight from parts of Normal People and Beautiful World, but I'm glad I read it, even if a lot of what I liked about it was the smug self-satisfaction that I'm Not Frances Any More.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Chronic illness, Self harm, and Sexual content

Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual violence, and Vomit

vannahcabana's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

3.5

This book follows Frances’ journey as a young college student. This book is not what I thought it was when I picked it up. However, it’s not terrible, but I didn’t think it was great. A great deal of intimate moments throughout that I personally didn’t think were necessary to the storyline. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Self harm, and Sexual content

Moderate: Infertility and Miscarriage

nineinchnails's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

frances was painfully relatable and i really loved her despite all the secondhand embarrassment and frustration. i definitely came out of it confused and conflicted on how to feel about nick but at least i don’t completely loathe him! for now this is tied with normal people but i’m not sure if it’ll measure up beyond the short term since i really loved normal people.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Mental illness

Moderate: Chronic illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Medical content, Toxic friendship, and Classism

Minor: Infertility, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Police brutality

Body dysmorphia

theliteraryteapot's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I have absolutely zero tolerance when it comes to adultery so obviously this was not a book for me. Yes, I understand the characters are meant to be very flawed and all that stuff. Okay and then what? It certainly didn't feel like any of them grew out of this. No character development whatsover and they all need therapy. Reading about privileged wealthy and culturally bourgeois white characters is not much interesting to me. They are left-leaning but their political discussions felt so very performative (reminding me of people patting themselves on the back after watching the tv show Dear White People). I've seen people debating on Rooney's writing style and I don't get why? There's nothing to say to it, it's easy to read and very accessible.

Although I have endometriosis, I don't think I can judge the representation that much because it can manifest in many different ways from one person to another. The only thing (maybe I'm nitpicking here), is that no you don't necessarily need a surgery to confirm a diagnosis, an mri scan is enough. And no, endometriosis is not just painful periods and infertility, it's so much more, there are so many other symptoms and different types of pain (outside periods and ovulations).
It's funny because on paper, Frances could have been my representation: bi, endometriosis, poetess, studying literature, financially struggling (except for the fact her uncle owns her apartment), and yet... Nothing worked for me. It's just not for me.

I'm glad it got me out of a reading slump and I'm glad to see endometriosis more in fiction. That's it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Medical content

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, and Pregnancy

xosevenusagbadan's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.0

I was nervous to read Sally Rooney after reading and loving Normal People, but I think somehow I needed to read this books in the stage of life that im in right now. you have no time to think, this books just dives you into Frances’ life. I was completely sucked in even though on the surface I should not have been. I should have been confused and maybe even a but disturbed. It almost reminded me of The Stranger. I think if youre a woman in her 20s that loves to think and contemplate and desire, this book is for you.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Blood, Medical trauma, and Alcohol

Moderate: Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Miscarriage, Sexism, and Suicidal thoughts

readingonthehorizon's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Conversations with Friends was a challenge for me to read. I took a 2 week break from reading it around halfway through and even then, I had to put the book down at the end of each chapter.

I'm not sure what about it made me do this. The language itself is not challenging but it's possibly the themes. I felt so far detached from the characters but at the same time related in a way I never have before. It made me feel such odd emotions that I know I'll never be able to identify.

But I would like to say that I loved how Sally Rooney didn't use quotation marks.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Medical content

Moderate: Sexual content

ilovebooks1967's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

A good book, however sometimes there are somewhat patronising essay-like pages that come across as perhaps pretentious to the reader. Very romantic and enjoyable nonetheless.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Biphobia, Chronic illness, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

mariabacterium's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness and Sexual content

Moderate: Alcoholism, Self harm, and Alcohol

djenkin96's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny sad medium-paced

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

3.75

I think it was just a story of repeated behaviours from all the main characters. There were sections of self development or self awareness with the intent to improve, but did any character actually develop ? In the end I didn’t even end up liking Bobbi or Frances or even Melissa. I’m not even sure I liked nick. A lot of loose ends at the end ? It’s  Like the author got bored, undid all the self-awareness and ended the book ? 

I did like the relevant topics And The nod to endometriosis.However I Feel the author  glazed over a large amount of obvious body image issues and an eating disorder ?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol