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smittonwith'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
5.0
“The road to recovery is not linear. It’s not straight. It’s a bumpy path, with lots of twists and turns. But you’re on the right track.”
“Maybe if all ah we had learned to talk about our troubles, we wouldn’t carry so much on our shoulders all the way to the grave.”
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, and Grief
mari1532'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
4.0
Brief Summary: Queenie is a woman trying to find herself after a devastating breakup. However, the more she tries to avoid her problems the more problems she seems to have.
Thoughts: If I was rating this book simply on writing it would be 5 out of 5. Carty-Williams writes with such emotionally vivid gripping detail that you can't help but sympathize or empathize with her characters. That being said this book was a lot. The book blurb describes it as Bridget Jones meets Americanah and I did not get the quicky, cheery vibes of Bridget Jones until the last 10 pages of the book.
I appreciated how this was written to read as if we were reading Queenie's thoughts as if she were writing in a journal because it made her seem vulnerable and relatable. There were quite a few points where I was yelling at Queenie to not do that thing. Carty-Williams wrote her in such a way that you immediately felt that Queenie was your friend and you wanted the best for her. I think the nuance of Queeni and every other character in the book was my favourite part.
Of course, there were a few people I did not like in this book even though they were well-written. Men whose names start with T, random Guys, and backstabbing friends were the villains of this book. On some level, I do think these subplots highlight the mess of being a woman in your 20s and on another level that some people truly never leave high school.
I also really liked the journey that Queenie went on with therapy and her family. The arc of that plot line was beautiful to see and highlighted how people can sometimes surprise you.
This was a really good book and I would recommend it as a read. However, this is more a coming-of-age story and what it takes to discover who you are as a person, rather than a rom-com. It is exquisitely written.
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
kquixotic's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual content
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Grief, Cultural appropriation, and Abandonment
The main character’s experience of Racialized sexualization and exotification by men, and her complicated relationship to these encounters, is what made this book stand out to me. I’ve not found contemporary literature to grapple with these themes in such a relatable way.littlecozyreaderr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
sarah_reading_party's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
-queenie's jamaican british family, their dialogue/slang, and the way they care for each other
-queenie's friend group, the corgis... nothing like a good group of friends :)
-queenie's determination to improve her mental health and seek the therapy she needs
the bad:
-graphic abuse & sexual content - queenie put herself into bad situations and men put her into bad situations. that could have been shown without such graphic content/descriptions. i had to skim some large portions of this book. :(
-some of the workplace things queenie deals with could have been avoided if she just, ya know, worked. alas....
i probably would not have finished this book if it had not been a book club selection. the author is a talented writer and i'd consider reading another of her books in the future!
Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexism, Medical content, and Grief
ank3'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
4.5
The first half of the book is heart wrenching. The ending warmed my heart. Queenie shows great strength in this world where she is mistreated repeatedly. She picks herself up by accepting therapy which is not accepted in her culture. She slowly recovers with the help from her realistically imperfect friends and family.
Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
stephmcoakley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
jaywithwhiskey'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
4.5
Graphic: Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Colonisation
Minor: Police brutality
quinn12_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
sydapel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Minor: Miscarriage and Police brutality