ashe01's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Grief, Car accident, and Death
Moderate: Cursing, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Minor: Kidnapping and Drug use
pikaellie's review
3.5
Spoiler
Ledger and Kenna's relationship. I liked that they got together in the end, but every freaking time there was a serious moment between them, like Kenna telling her story, it ended in sex. Seriously, if I had just poured my emotions out the way that Kenna did, the last thing on my mind would be having sex. Also, again, Kenna had just poured her emotions out, then she and Ledger had sex, and then all Ledger could think about was the cleavage that her shirt showed. It made me want to vomit.Like I said, this is the last book I'll be reading by Colleen Hoover. Too much forced sex, not enough time on the plot of the book that is actually very good. I don't want to be distracted by gagging about the sex scenes that felt forced, and the disgusting thoughts that the men always have in CoHo's books. (Seriously, November 9 had the same problem with just the perverted thoughts that Ben had about Fallon. Gross.)
Read this book if you are okay with random sex scenes in the middle of the interesting plot.
Graphic: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Cursing
bookserie's review
- 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? No
4.25
Spoiler
I find the explanation of why Kenna left Scotty lacking. I feel it didn’t make much sense. And just like that she was forgiven by everyone. Like the hate that Scotty’s family harbored for 5 years magically disappeared after reading Kenna’s letter to Scotty of how hurt she was and how disconnected she was from everything during the timeSpoiler
But overall, it’s a good read if you want to have a good cry over a mom longing for her child.
Moderate: Sexual content and Death
Minor: Car accident and Cursing
y3llow_umbr3lla's review
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Grief, Death, Alcohol, Car accident, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Blood, and Cursing
Minor: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, and Infertility
adrialucilfer's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Grief, Pregnancy, Car accident, Blood, Alcohol, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Death, Cursing, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
saraavowlerr's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Grief, Sexual content, Alcohol, Abandonment, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
juliamb's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Grief, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Blood
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Violence
micaelamariem'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
2.5
This time was...slightly better.
Reminders of Him is about Kenna, a young woman who made a tragic mistake that landed her in prison and caused her to lose everything she loved--including custody of the life she didn't even realize she was carrying. This is the story of after her prison release, how she found her way back to loved ones in her search for redemption and a way to forgive herself.
And look, put like that, it sounds good. But Kenna's tragic mistake--and this isn't really a spoiler as it's mentioned in the first chapter--involved drunk driving. And while I can empathize with some of her situation, and wholeheartedly agree that there needs to be a better system in place that helps rehabilitated convicts enter into a more accepting world, I still find it hard to agree the stupid decision to get behind the wheel while intoxicated. There's not really any excuse for that and I can understand why people hated her in the aftermath.
Another thing that disappointed me was how quickly people's opinions and moods changed. Realistically, acceptance and forgiveness is more of a slow burn thing, but this happened way too quickly, without a middle it felt like.
All this negative stuff really affected my enjoyment of the reading. However, I can admit the writing style has really improved since Maybe Someday. And I actually did like Ledger, though he seemed a bit too perfect for a character, if you know what I mean. I wouldn't have minded seeing more flaws in him. But the romance was good, and I mostly enjoyed that aspect.
In the end, I think the book could've been improved with more of a slow burn to forgiveness--even if that meant the book had to be longer. It would've also given me more time to come to terms with the mistake Kenna made.
That being said, this is a highly rated book and I know I'm in an unpopular opinion here. I would rate the book between 2.5 stars to 3 stars, and probably wouldn't recommend it, but that doesn't necessarily mean you wouldn't like it!
Graphic: Car accident, Cursing, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Grief, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
texas_reznikoff's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Miscarriage, Cursing, Death, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Addiction, Car accident, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, and Pregnancy
crystal83087's review
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Confinement, Car accident, Alcohol, Death, Drug use, Cursing, Pregnancy, and Blood