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sprucewillow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Drug use, Eating disorder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Minor: Death, Vomit, and Car accident
katiegurnett17's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
ryand13's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
snjos58'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
3.5
Graphic: Body shaming, Cursing, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Gaslighting
ashley_tx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
oholland's review against another edition
- 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
2.25
Graphic: Eating disorder
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Mental illness
ginareadspararom's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Alcohol
cgm42'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
1.25
Stars removed for placing Baird in California (google says its in New York. Want a school setting in California? the state has many to choose from or make up fictional school) and for improper use of The Cranberries (this is a personal bias).
The story itself is about entering in messy/abusive relationships and confusing sex with actual feelings or a relationship, its told in 2 perspectives Stephen & Lucy. There are a couple of flashback scenes, one that I don't feel like it helped the story in any way and the other flashback takes place in college and is the bulk of the story. There are better books out there that address these themes better, go read those. That said I didn't hate the book enough to DNF so that's my fault really because I love trash. If you're here for the relatable likeable character, this is not your book.
Although its mostly in Lucy's perspective, I could have done with less of Stephen. We get it that he's terrible as the story unfolds and seeing the story be told by his perspective makes sense to give context to his actions and his obsession with Lucy but there are certain storylines from him that didn't need to be there as it borders on him being a cartoon villain, when I felt the book already established quite clearly that he is not a good person. Making him comically obvious that he's terrible removes the subtlety of how abusers act.
Lucy's story arc is...complicated. Although I didn't really like her personality & a lot of the decisions she made, that didn't make me less empathetic of her situation. Because yes being around an abusive and charming person, you will make dumb decisions, especially when you're in college.
I really didn't like the Macy's storyline as it didn't contributed anything to the story and could have easily been left out. Stephen shouldn't have been driving under the influence and he shouldn't have left the scene of the accident and he belongs in jail but it one of those things where its like yes we get it he's evil look at what a terrible thing he did stop beating us over the head with it. Also, when Lucy is remembering Macy and she's convinced that it was about him... I can't suspend my belief that hard. Sure Lucy is smart but for her to just know that it was him who caused the car accident makes ZERO sense & even confronting him like that made ZERO sense. It felt like fridge-ing but even more useless.
My other nit-picky thing was The Unspeakable Thing, once her character talks about catching her mom in an affair with her school girl crush (and wow what a creep that guy was) she keeps talking about it as The Unspeakable Thing, just call it CJ's affair from then on.
Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Car accident
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Drug use, Mental illness, and Medical trauma
kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, and Classism
wonderenglish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Mental illness, and Sexual content