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mswarning's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
slow-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
3.25
It was really sweet, but not a lot happened. It's definitely a slowburn with little payoff. The ptsd portrayal was nice to see and pretty realistic so at least there's that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism, Infidelity, Vomit, and Alcohol
jennysometimesjen's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
This was a re-read after re-reading The Bookish Life of Nina Hill.
I really enjoyed the story of Laura. Through the book she dealt with a lot of trauma, horrible ex and finally dealing with her mental health. The romance with Impossibly Handsome Bob is slow - they are lovely as friends but it's nice to have a happily ever after.
Nina and Polly appear in this book (both introduced in Bookish Life...) and their characters develop more. Nina has her backstory and I love how she interacts with Laura. Polly is a key player in Laura's new life, but it's great to see more of her.
I'd love a story focusing on Polly (with more Nina and Laura) but I think the series is finished.
Abbi Waxman is a fantastic writer (and introduces me to new words - not so many that it's difficult to read but just enough that you want to make sure you definitely have the right definition from the context). She's so funny and the writing is immersive.
I really enjoyed the story of Laura. Through the book she dealt with a lot of trauma, horrible ex and finally dealing with her mental health. The romance with Impossibly Handsome Bob is slow - they are lovely as friends but it's nice to have a happily ever after.
Nina and Polly appear in this book (both introduced in Bookish Life...) and their characters develop more. Nina has her backstory and I love how she interacts with Laura. Polly is a key player in Laura's new life, but it's great to see more of her.
I'd love a story focusing on Polly (with more Nina and Laura) but I think the series is finished.
Abbi Waxman is a fantastic writer (and introduces me to new words - not so many that it's difficult to read but just enough that you want to make sure you definitely have the right definition from the context). She's so funny and the writing is immersive.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Misogyny, Vomit, and Medical content
pagesfromhome's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- 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? Yes
3.75
First all, I love Abbi Waxman's work and was really looking forward to this one and all in all it delivered. I loved the "found family" feeling, but I did find myself frustrated with the omniscient narrator. This isn't an uncommon narration style for Waxman, but I just felt like it bounced around to so many people and there are so many asides for comic relief that are cute, but I felt a bit pulled away from who I was supposed to care about.
I also found myself frustrated with how slow Laura's character development happened. She's clearly dealing with a lot and I absolutely love how Waxman approached what she's facing, but I would have loved to see glimmers of growth throughout the story, rather than it all just being suggested at the end.
I also feel like the clearly toxic and frankly abusive relationships that Laura deals with are glossed over in exchange for just saying that Laura doesn't like confrontation.
It was nice for all of the characters from Waxman's previous LA books to come together, I just felt like by focusing on everyone else, I lost my focus on Laura who I was hoping to really partner with throughout the story. But the romance was sweet, the friendships are top-notch, and Waxman is a master of writing animals which is a skill that should be more appreciated.
I also found myself frustrated with how slow Laura's character development happened. She's clearly dealing with a lot and I absolutely love how Waxman approached what she's facing, but I would have loved to see glimmers of growth throughout the story, rather than it all just being suggested at the end.
It was nice for all of the characters from Waxman's previous LA books to come together, I just felt like by focusing on everyone else, I lost my focus on Laura who I was hoping to really partner with throughout the story. But the romance was sweet, the friendships are top-notch, and Waxman is a master of writing animals which is a skill that should be more appreciated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Car accident
Minor: Alcoholism and Alcohol