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daniellenelson'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
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
imlindseybunny's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Sure, there were a lot of turbo-horny Freaka moments and I've questioned my sanity several times while reading this, but it was hard not to root for Frida. I achieved levels of empathy I never thought possible - but I quickly found myself hoping Frida would earn back the right to the one thing that gave her life meaning.
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, and Alcohol
kelisabeth's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
ottercorg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I appreciated Chan's writing style and characters, and for once also appreciated the open ending.
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol
vulgarboy's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
taysbooktalk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, and Alcohol
apollinares's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Frida isn't a likeable character. She's convinced us of it on page one, and she's convinced herself of it long before. As someone whose mother made mistakes she deeply regrets, and as someone who has had many conversations with her about what those mistakes did to both of us, I genuinely feel for Frida. I've seen other reviews condemn her, and it's really interesting to me where a reader would draw the line on what they find unacceptable in a parent, and how much they're willing to dehumanise a mother/discredit her emotional needs, when they learn the mother has made a mistake that caused her child harm. I'm not trying to excuse abuse, it's just fascinating how quickly someone's empathy for a person, and their sense of nuance, disappears when the person in the wrong is a parent. I mean, people are rating the book lower because the protagonist has done something wrong and that makes the book supposedly bad. The point is right there, guys, come on...
The way blame is placed in the book is interesting to me, too - how the women are treated as irredeemable, and how the state would rather interfere once harm has been caused (and arguably proceed to traumatise the child even more) than offer parents mental health support before mistakes like this can occur. It's infuriating to experience and to process, and when the fathers were introduced, I became so much angrier knowing how much easier they supposedly have it.
The ending is tragic and inevitable. I don't know how else Chan could have ended this book. Frida's unravelling is addicting, and sad, and I couldn't look away the whole time.
Graphic: Child abuse, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
Minor: Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
notalwaysontime's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Child abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Minor: Drug use, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Alcohol
janienejulia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Kidnapping, and Abandonment
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, and Alcohol
sarwils's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Pregnancy
Minor: Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, and Alcohol