Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

Life's Too Short by Abby Jimenez

20 reviews

clairebartholomew549's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.0

I bawled through this book. It might have been because I was on a plane (I read once that we're more likely to cry on planes - something about feeling detached from our normal lives and feeling kind of private and thoughtful) and because I was on the tail end of my period (lol that I treat Goodreads like my diary, oops), but every Abby book hits me hard. Abby always handles delicate subject matter with such deftness and compassion, and the way characters handle grief and dread and fear always feels grounded in reality and complicated in the way it would actually play out in life. I was initially wary of the way the characters were talking about pregnancy and addiction, but as usual Abby came through with her trademark empathy and introspection and made me feel so deeply for everyone involved. This book really got to me with its depictions of how families can always heal and figure out how to be there for each other, no matter how bad it's been for years and generations, and of how no day is guaranteed. I was obsessed with both Vanessa and Adrian and was really rooting for both of them, and the ending truly gave me chills. This was one of my favorites of Abby's for sure. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Death of parent

forrestlaur's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful sad slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma

Minor: Abandonment

zalikawashere's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Abandonment

Minor: Car accident

zemily83's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma

Moderate: Mental illness and Grief

Minor: Addiction

sistatv's review

emotional funny lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad slow-paced

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

4.25

Abby Jimenez writes excellent book boyfriends. Like A 1, perfect fucking book boyfriends. I loved this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

teajunki's review against another edition

challenging hopeful sad medium-paced

• 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Medical content, and Medical trauma

rachels_booknook's review against another edition

4.0

Life’s Too Short is the final book in Abby Jimenez’s The Friend Zone trilogy, but it’s not largely connected to the first two books. Adrian is briefly introduced in The Happy Ever After Playlist but he doesn’t have a huge profile. There’s a bit of a cameo in Life’s Too Short by the characters from the first two books, but it could definitely be read as a stand alone. This one also takes place in Minnesota as opposed to California. 

All of Abby Jimenez’s books have a serious and/or medical component and this one is no exception. We don’t find out for a while what the medical problem actually is but we know it’s probably something pretty severe. Add to this, Vanessa’s family, which she is holding onto by a thread – taking care of her younger sister’s baby, worrying about her brother (I ended up liking Brent by the end), helping her dad get his life organized. Vanessa is so many things to so many people and it’s just really nice to see how Adrian supports not only her, but her family, and the deep friendship that develops first and foremost between them. The ending was so good. I figured out part of what would obviously be involved in the grand gesture but it was great to see it play out. 

I love the message in this book about not living your worst moments twice – the first time being in anticipation. I think it’s really hard to actually do that but I appreciated Vanessa’s positive spirit and outlook. I loved that she helps Adrian with some of his own challenges by helping him look at things in a different way. 

I wish there was more about Vanessa’s travel blog and how she makes money from it, but I guess it make sense that since Adrian doesn’t know much about it, neither does the reader. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical trauma and Death of parent

lawoodworth's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, and Death of parent

xomandymoo's review

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted reflective slow-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, and Abandonment

macykey's review against another edition

emotional funny 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? It's complicated

4.25

I finished this book in a day. A DAY. The ending did feel a little rushed to me, but I loved Vanessa and Adrian’s dynamic. I’d also be a sucker for a man stepping into a father role for a baby that’s not his. While I do think that Adrian crossed a line with the third act breakup, I understood it. I understood both their perspectives. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Sexual content