Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate

24 reviews

syrah78's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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? No

4.25

4.25/5

I could not put down this novel. Avery could not discover the truth fast enough for me. Wingate really brought to life this hidden tragedy in American history. It was heart wrenching and just awful as each sibling disappeared from Rill. All the characters were given a really nice depth and the river was beautifully written. I met the author who wrote this book and she said that she always gives you a happy ending, so I had to just keep telling myself that and the ending really was nice.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

sjanke2's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

2.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

abbyynormal's review against another edition

I am not emotionally prepared to finish this book, but I will be some day. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Infertility, Miscarriage, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

vulco1's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This book was great.  But a ton of trigger warnings... I was being punched in the heart by all sides, lol.  Super touching, the main characters had different stories and writing styles and were written differently.  A+ work.  Loved it but will not read again, lol.

The mystery was so/so.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, and Abandonment

jmiles758's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

angievansprang's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.75

This book does a great job with story telling and making the characters come alive off the pages. It was an incredibly sad read, especially due to the aspects of the book that are not fictional. Knowing that these things really happened to live children for years, unchecked, is a horrible thought. I’m glad this book is out there and was even able to bring clarity to some survivors.

The parts I did not love were how the author & the characters spoke about most of the Black characters. I understand that much of this book was set in 1930s Tennessee, but I found certain descriptors unnecessary and racist.

Fuck Georgia Tann and her conspirators, may they forever rot in hell!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Abandonment, and Classism

Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Dementia, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Death of parent

phoenix115's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• 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? No

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Grief

Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Abandonment

Minor: Infertility

kitten_nuisance's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

1.5

I was primarily interested in the historical timeline of this book, so I guess I should have read something nonfiction on the subject instead. I did enjoy parts of this, but it was also a bit circuitous in ways? 

The modern timeline was not enjoyable, like a Southern version of a Debbie Macomber book. It’s a feat to bore me with a plot about someone trying to find out secrets that I’m already invested in!

I have to sadly say that both of these were drowned out to me by a chorus of conservative, even racist, dogwhistles. Everything an author includes in a book is a choice. Confederate roses are a choice. A character in modern day using an old, *moved* slave cabin as a workshop is a choice. Saying that your sister is glaring at you and looks like a Chinaman doing laundry is a choice. It appears that a lot of readers are fine with these choices. I will be choosing to be more cautious with my White Woman Fiction reading selections in the future.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Trafficking, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Dementia, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Classism

Minor: Infertility

Adoption/adoption coercion

ladyaligator's review against another edition

3.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Infertility and Dementia

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, and Alcohol

ldavis519's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

• 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? No

5.0

LOVED this book! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Dementia, and Abandonment