ariana16's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.25
dipali17's review
4.0
Katherine Webber continues to impress with her sophomore novel. This is a beautifully written story of love, loss, grief and family.
writeronherway's review
4.0
This book kept catching my eye but romance isn't usually my thing. When I actually got around to reading it I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It's a very realistic portrayal of how complicated and confusing relationship dynamics can be and it wasn't confined to romantic connections but about how grief tests family bonds, friendships and your perception of yourself.
You ache for Reiko who is struggling, desperately trying to live her life to the fullest for herself and her late sister, to hit all of the picture perfect moments even though it is breaking her to hit those milestones without her sister. She loves the desert and goes climbing when she can to escape and be herself. On a midnight climb she runs into Seth and their relationship grows from there. In the desert, they are on equal footing and their relationship is gentle and easy, possibly because they are both lonely, but when they return to school things get complicated.
I liked that Reiko is not perfect and doesn't know how to navigate things so lets them happen until it kind of spirals out of control. It was really cleverly done because you understood why she did things even as you thought 'no, don't do that' and similarly Seth becomes dislikable but you can see where it's coming from too until it verges on sexual assault (TW). Their relationship is a very honest exploration of how two people can need completely different things from each other and this collision of need can lead to something unhealthy. What I liked most is that there was no magical fix, no romanticised happy ending for them. It ends because they were in love with the idea of who the other person was but not the whole person.
Reiko moves on (after some unfortunate moves to get him back) with a better understanding herself better. The focus returns to facing her grief, rebuilding her relationship with her family, confronting her future plans and trusting her friends. This was such an important and cathartic focus. Usually in romance, I get so frustrated when couples treat each other appallingly but it's all magically undone because they love each other so this was a really refreshing take. This didn't happen. I really liked that I could follow the narrative beyond the story's end and imagine her in Japan. Reiko's heart is already broken from losing her sister and this is a story of healing.
I didn't want to put it down but was really satisfied with how it ended. With the setting and brilliant character dynamics I could really see this being turned into a Netflix film too.
You ache for Reiko who is struggling, desperately trying to live her life to the fullest for herself and her late sister, to hit all of the picture perfect moments even though it is breaking her to hit those milestones without her sister. She loves the desert and goes climbing when she can to escape and be herself. On a midnight climb she runs into Seth and their relationship grows from there. In the desert, they are on equal footing and their relationship is gentle and easy, possibly because they are both lonely, but when they return to school things get complicated.
I liked that Reiko is not perfect and doesn't know how to navigate things so lets them happen until it kind of spirals out of control. It was really cleverly done because you understood why she did things even as you thought 'no, don't do that' and similarly Seth becomes dislikable but you can see where it's coming from too until it verges on sexual assault (TW). Their relationship is a very honest exploration of how two people can need completely different things from each other and this collision of need can lead to something unhealthy. What I liked most is that there was no magical fix, no romanticised happy ending for them. It ends because they were in love with the idea of who the other person was but not the whole person.
Reiko moves on (after some unfortunate moves to get him back) with a better understanding herself better. The focus returns to facing her grief, rebuilding her relationship with her family, confronting her future plans and trusting her friends. This was such an important and cathartic focus. Usually in romance, I get so frustrated when couples treat each other appallingly but it's all magically undone because they love each other so this was a really refreshing take. This didn't happen. I really liked that I could follow the narrative beyond the story's end and imagine her in Japan. Reiko's heart is already broken from losing her sister and this is a story of healing.
I didn't want to put it down but was really satisfied with how it ended. With the setting and brilliant character dynamics I could really see this being turned into a Netflix film too.
soph1sh's review
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
lauraleh98's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
whatdoreadss's review
5.0
This was such a beautifully written, emotional and realistic book. I really enjoyed reading it and I could not put it down <3
froy's review
5.0
Books like these make me believe you don't find books but they find you.
The first chapters made me think this would be a weird story, not living up to the promising cover and the short introduction at the back.
But then the story took off and it touched my heart. It sounded recognisable, it inspired and brought hope and wisedom.
It's really an amazing story.
The first chapters made me think this would be a weird story, not living up to the promising cover and the short introduction at the back.
But then the story took off and it touched my heart. It sounded recognisable, it inspired and brought hope and wisedom.
It's really an amazing story.
thebooksareeverywhere's review
4.0
https://thebooksareeverywhere.com/2019/11/03/review-only-love-can-break-your-heart-by-katherine-webber/
Since this book has been released, it’s been on my TBR. I adored Wing Jones, and have been keeping an eye on this author ever since. Thank you to Tavi for buying Only Love Can Break Your Heart for me off my wishlist!
Reiko is a heartbroken teenager who is dealing with the tragic loss of her sister. When she finds an unexpected friend in Seth, her world is turned upside down and she is forced to face her grief.
I wasn’t disappointed by this book, and I was drawn in from the first page. There was a certain level of comfort that came from Webber’s beautiful, poetic descriptions of the desert, and I found myself loving the locations as much as Reiko herself. Webber left me feeling like I was being enveloped in warmth every time I picked up this novel.
Only Love Can Break Your Heart explores topics in depth that I’ve hardly seen in YA, and found very interesting. This covered subjects such as grief, family, friendships and most importantly for me, social hierarchy. Social hierarchy is often not discussed in YA, especially from the viewpoint of those at the top of the social ladder. However, Reiko is unashamedly one of those people, and reading about her viewpoints were fascinating.
I had a love/hate relationship with Reiko throughout this book, unfortunately. Due to her attitude, she made many mistakes and some decisions which I frowned upon and found hard to relate to. I unfortunately felt the same about Seth as the book progressed, which left me feeling somehow betrayed. However, Reiko went through a lot of self development throughout the book and I left feeling reassured by the way she matures.
Overall, this book had compelling characters, a beautiful location and heart-wrenching plot line. Although I had problems with the characters at times, I would highly recommend this lovely story.
★★★★
4 out of 5 stars
-Beth
May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽
Since this book has been released, it’s been on my TBR. I adored Wing Jones, and have been keeping an eye on this author ever since. Thank you to Tavi for buying Only Love Can Break Your Heart for me off my wishlist!
Reiko is a heartbroken teenager who is dealing with the tragic loss of her sister. When she finds an unexpected friend in Seth, her world is turned upside down and she is forced to face her grief.
I wasn’t disappointed by this book, and I was drawn in from the first page. There was a certain level of comfort that came from Webber’s beautiful, poetic descriptions of the desert, and I found myself loving the locations as much as Reiko herself. Webber left me feeling like I was being enveloped in warmth every time I picked up this novel.
Only Love Can Break Your Heart explores topics in depth that I’ve hardly seen in YA, and found very interesting. This covered subjects such as grief, family, friendships and most importantly for me, social hierarchy. Social hierarchy is often not discussed in YA, especially from the viewpoint of those at the top of the social ladder. However, Reiko is unashamedly one of those people, and reading about her viewpoints were fascinating.
I had a love/hate relationship with Reiko throughout this book, unfortunately. Due to her attitude, she made many mistakes and some decisions which I frowned upon and found hard to relate to. I unfortunately felt the same about Seth as the book progressed, which left me feeling somehow betrayed. However, Reiko went through a lot of self development throughout the book and I left feeling reassured by the way she matures.
Overall, this book had compelling characters, a beautiful location and heart-wrenching plot line. Although I had problems with the characters at times, I would highly recommend this lovely story.
★★★★
4 out of 5 stars
-Beth
May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽