Reviews tagging 'Miscarriage'

The Stand-In by Lily Chu

24 reviews

finnickdeservedbetter's review

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

For readers who like:

• celebrity romance
• fake identity
• dislike to lovers
• biracial (asian/white) MC
• first gen Canadian MC

The book was like a breathe of fresh air. I was kinda putting it off in favour of other books but I wish I hadn't. The characters are ao well-rounded and dimensional. They had flaws of course but I could relate to each one and honestly, see myself being friends with any of them.

This touched on a few big topics (like identity- being biracial and the child of an immigrant, mental health, and sexual harrassment to name a few) but all in a very accessible and approachable way. 

The only reason I didn't give it 5☆ is the unnecessary (isn't it always?)

third act breakup paired with miscommunication 🤢

. 

Other than that tho, I really enjoyed this book and got through it all in one sitting. This is my first book by Lily Chu but it definitely won't be my last.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Mental illness, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Child abuse

emfass's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-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? Yes

4.5

Philippa Soo is DELIGHTFUL as the narrator. Lily Chu's writing is so entertaining, fresh, invigorating, and just so so good. The dialogue sparkles.

This was a closed-door romance which I usually do not go in for (personal preference only, happy for those that like it/don't mind it!), but the writing was so freaking great.

I had some issues with parts of the plot

(how one-dimensional the sexually harassing boss was, the mother leaving her daughter in another country and never ever begin in touch, I mean UGH)

, but overall really enjoyed this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Abandonment, and Dementia

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Mental illness, Racism, and Death of parent

Minor: Death of parent and Miscarriage

tea_rea's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Racism, Dementia, and Mental illness

Moderate: Sexism, Death of parent, Grief, and Classism

Minor: Miscarriage, Cancer, Terminal illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Child death, and Pregnancy

airs21's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia

Minor: Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Death of parent

lara_r's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Chronic illness, Dementia, and Grief

Moderate: Miscarriage, Grief, Death of parent, Death, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, and Pregnancy

Minor: Alcohol and Stalking

shaykay's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted medium-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? Yes

4.5

I got the Stand-In as one of my birthday presents last summer, and I finally got to pick it up. It was a fun book where these two women switch places. One gets to live a famous life while the other takes a break. However, it took some serious undertones pretty early on in the book. We see them struggle with dementia, depression, and workplace harassment. I want to read more books by Chu, and this book and her newest one are both in the plan that's included with Audible membership.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Mental illness, and Sexual harassment

syazahaniss's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-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? Yes

2.0

Kinda boring in that I barely felt any emotions while reading it. Besides a sense of solidarity when it came to Fangli’s mental health issues and the minor shock I felt for that one plot twist near the end, I read the rest of the story with a rather straight face. There was no chemistry between Gracie and Sam, and the “friendship” between her and Anjali also felt kind of off since the author kept mentioning that don’t do a lot of things supposed best friends do. I even merely skimmed through the backstory about Fangli and Gracie even though I was very curious.

Maybe this negative review was on me since I picked this book up, knowing full well I don’t like reading unrealistic stories between real people and celebrities.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Miscarriage

sdupont's review against another edition

emotional slow-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? Yes

3.75

This was a solid book. I feel like the romance took the back burner for most of the story. This slow burn didn’t really take flight until maybe 2/3 of the way in.The pacing for this book was quite slow, it would have benefitted from a faster pace and slightly shorter length. Often I found myself thinking I’ve read so much of this book but not much has happened. I liked Gracie, Sam, and Fangli. They were all characters you could relate to in some way. This book focuses a lot on Gracie’s internal thoughts and growth which leads to less of a romance feel and more of a contemporary fiction feel. I would still recommend this book though. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism

Minor: Miscarriage and Pregnancy

_neverendingstory's review against another edition

lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism and Dementia

Minor: Death of parent, Abandonment, and Miscarriage

maiareadss's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• 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

This is officially my number ONE Romantic Comedy EVER!! I could not put it down! It is the perfect mix of romance, humor, and serious topics. I wish it were a movie a movie so I could watch forever!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Dementia, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, and Mental illness

Minor: Miscarriage