Reviews tagging 'Racism'

If This Gets Out by Cale Dietrich, Sophie Gonzales

25 reviews

bg_oseman_fan's review against another edition

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? Yes

3.5

There were lots of things i loved about this book. i liked the focus on mental health, identity, and the role of celebrity and paradoxical relationships. i liked that both leads had problems to overcome individually and together. the supporting characters were also handled well. sometimes the narrative could delve into too black and white, but still had enough contemplation to keep me engaged. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Homophobia

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, and Alcohol

Minor: Racism, Sexual content, and Suicide attempt

diana_raquel's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted 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

3.75

 “Once you've learned shame, it settles into your skin like a tattoo. You can cover it up, but you can't scrub off the sense of inadequacy.” 

When I brought this book I didn't know what to expect. I saw it in the shelves of my local bookstore and the tittle caught my attention. Upon reading the summary, I decided to buy it because it seemed like something that I would like. 

And I was right! I really like it! Look, the way that the story is structured, I can see why people may think that this is a somewhat one direction fanfic turned book. There isn't anything that tells me that one direction (and the fan theories about some members of the band having a secret relationship) were an inspiration to the book but comparisons can be made. Nonetheless, lets review the book by what it is and not what could be. And I liked it! Its cute, heartwarming and has fluff, just the sorta of thing that I was looking to read at the time that I started this book. 

So, I would recommend it if you want to read something sweet, light and cute. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, and Outing

Minor: Racism and Sexual content

queerloras's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Biphobia, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Car accident, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

nitya_a's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad tense 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual content, Suicide, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Biphobia

bootsmom3's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism and Sexual content

stacy837's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction and Homophobia

Moderate: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Minor: Confinement, Racism, Sexual content, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

taleofabibliophile's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Biphobia, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Outing, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Moderate: Confinement, Sexual content, Vomit, and Car accident

Minor: Racism and Abandonment

CW: Forced closeting/

gracegeeks's review against another edition

emotional 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? Yes

4.0

one of my most-anticipated releases, but didn’t cancel out how triggering it could be, and was for me - it’s a good, but tough, read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Biphobia, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Homophobia

Moderate: Racism, Sexual content, Outing, and Gaslighting

silver_lining_in_a_book's review against another edition

emotional funny 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

3.5

 The thing about your dreams coming true is that, for a gold-spun moment, you catch a glimpse of what life could be like. Then when you lose it, and you crash back to reality, it’s from such a great height, all you can do is lie there, winded and bruised, while you come to terms with the idea that a happiness like that isn’t meant for you.

Representation: gay main character, bisexual main character, mixed-race main character, Asian main character, queer side characters

This book may be YA, but it gets DARK at certain moments, as is clear by the abundance of trigger warnings. Although, if none of these topics is too difficult for you to get through, I think the heart-warming moments are very worth the heart-breaking ones. There were paragraphs in this book that brought me close to tears and some that made me laugh out loud, some it is definitely an emotional rollercoaster.

This book alternates between two perspectives: Ruben Montez (written by Sophie Gonzales) and Zach Knight (written by Cale Dietrich) as the two boys struggle through their personal and shared problems. They make up half of the popular boy band called Saturday and, although their lives may appear perfect from the outside, that could not be further from the truth. Ruben feels suffocated by his abusive mother and his inability to come out publicly, while also struggling to hide his feelings for a fellow band member; Zach is discovering new things about himself that he refuses to acknowledge and is realising that he may never be allowed to pursue his true passion, which is song-writing. But when everything seems to start crashing down around them and their friendship becomes something more, will they be able to take back control over their own lives and decisions?

I really enjoyed the way the two authors had very different voices, which made the perspectives easier to distinguish, and I thought all four boys were really well-developed - they were loveable, complex and very flawed. There were some moments that made me cringe slightly, like the descriptions of their fans and how omniscient they seemed to be (they seemed more like some magical entity rather than actual human beings sometimes), but all in all "If This Gets Out" is just a really good time and I can definitely recommend it for a quick read! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Alcohol

Moderate: Biphobia and Homophobia

Minor: Racism and Sexual content

shaipanda's review against another edition

adventurous challenging hopeful lighthearted 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? Yes

5.0

I loved thisss - I’m so happy I preordered it tbh cause totally worth it 
I didn’t get around to reading it for a few months after I got it in the mail but once I started it yesterday I literally binged it in like 2 days lol 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Biphobia, Mental illness, Stalking, and Outing

Minor: Racism, Sexual content, Vomit, and Abandonment