The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
jeanettesreadingcorner'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? N/A
5.0
“Teal?” she asks, after a moment, wrinkling her nose. “It represents sexual assault awareness. I could give everyone an awesome cat eye too to make it really pop.” Emma stares at me for a second. Finally, a slow smile appears on her face. “That’s actually a really good idea.” •••
“We heard what you said, and it’s perfect,” Chelsea says, and Dani nods, suspiciously wiping quickly at her eyes.”
- Jennifer Iacopelli, Break the Fall 🤸🏻♀️💙
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Hi, readers!! Here is my book review for Break the Fall by Jennifer Iacopelli. I really enjoyed this suspenseful and empowering book. An amazing YA sports romance book!
- It’s so good! It’s relatively fast paced and it makes me want to keep reading every time. It’s so hard to put down this book!
- The romance between Audrey and Leo is so cute. The chemistry was there from the beginning and I ate it up. I love that the romance didn’t take away from the plot and storyline. Leo is so kind and funny, so supportive and respectful to Audrey. Their first kiss scene was perfect!
- The way Audrey, Emma, Chelsea, and Dani support each other was amazing to see. It makes the reader feel like they are part of the team too! Including teal into their makeup looks was simple but impactful. Teal is on the cover as well which is so fitting for the story. What happens to the girls is written in a realistic and sensible manner.
- I felt weird and creep vibes from Christopher Gibson from the beginning.
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Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Sexual assault and Adult/minor relationship
amy_sutt'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? No
4.0
The gymnasts face many challenges and their ability to focus on their gymnastics and mental preparation is really tested in the weeks leading up to the Games. All of the things that led them to be talented enough to make the team, may not be enough to succeed at the games.
I was emotionally invested in the journey these girls went on. At times, yes, I was annoyed about the emotions but remembering that even elite athletes can just be emotional teens sometimes too. Once it got to the Olympics, it was really dramatic and kept me up past bedtime to finish the story.
Moderate: Sexual assault
There is an ongoing thread about sexual abuse by the coach on teen gymnasts. Generally, there are no descriptions of specific acts, except in one small note within a scene between 3 other gymnasts in Tokyo. There is a lot of the emotional follow-up of one of the victims as well as the team splitting after in how they react to the allegations (some victim shaming).yashitak'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual assault
Moderate: Rape
michellezezhang's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Sexual assault
yuna's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
The "romance" subplot had no chemistry to me.
The bleh was the BIPOC rep. Felt like set dressing, Audrey reads like a white girl who's only KorAm when it suits the narrative for a buzzwordy sentence. This felt like a white author writing a biracial, half-white character for diversity points. I hate using 'authenticity' to evaluate how realistic something sounds since it's often used to gatekeep BIPOC experiences, so I'll just say that my KorAm self was really put off by how the BIPOC characters were handled.
First person POV is subjective, and this is something that I think got better toward the end but was cringey at the beginning--read a lot like an adult trying too hard to sound like a teen.
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual assault
abmcarthur's review against another edition
- 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: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault
hbrown'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? No
3.5
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
charlottereadsthings's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Given the recent revelations from real world gymnastics associations and sexual assault allegations, this book hit even harder. But what I found interesting was the framing: the story initicially focuses on the allegations against the coach but that quickly moves to background noise as the focus is pushed to the girls trying to get their big win. At first I wasn't sure about this, but the futher I read, the more it made sense. The story is about the girls rising up and achieving greatness, reclaiming their stories and therefore the narrative.
Iacopelli's passion for Gymnastics really comes through and it's clear the love she had for this story and the olympics.
However, I found the story really start to stagnate because, apart from Audrey's back injury being a "will it won't it fail" moment, there wasn't much else going on.
Moderate: Drug use and Emotional abuse
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault