Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Talking at Night by Claire Daverley

15 reviews

geoalice23's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• 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

3.0

my love for the writing style grew at the same rate my hate for the plot did 

tw: trauma bond 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

shrineofyourlies's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Eating disorder

yourpalwhit's review against another edition

emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.75

Although this is the first lit fic i could actually finish is several months, there is something about it that really perturbs me. It's not just that rollercoaster ride of emotions i can only equate to a Disney princess film, but also, something about the introduction of the brother's sexuality, the focus on developing his reactions to it rather than actually developing him into an endearing character before writing him into what reads like a pretty clique ending--almost like he was developed to be the "token" in a contemporary novel just so people would buy it. Like when people say "I have a friend who's <insert Black, Latino, Trans person, gay> here. 

Another thing that perturbs me about this book is the ending. I had to fight the urge to skip ahead in some parts of the story...to will myself not to just skip to the last page, only to get to the last page and have the author give out. I don't always need a happy ending, but some kind of ending would have been nice.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Outing, and Toxic friendship

nzmerchant's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Genuinely don’t know how to rate this book because it made me feel so many things all at once, and i hate that but it’s also kinda done it’s job in that sense? Feel like I need a couple of weeks to process this book. Anyone who says it’s like “Normal People” is lying - it’s probably closer to “A Little Life” in terms how much trauma and shit that characters are put through. I will say (no pun intended) that I loved the theme about passions and following what you love, filling your life and time with that. But I cannot stand how much the characters had to endure to learn that. And I don’t think this level of “yearning” should be glorified or aspired to. These kids trauma bonded and formed an unhealthy attachment to each other - whether that got healthier at the end when they worked on themselves, idk but it just seems rather odd to me that everyone thinks this is romantic. Or maybe I’m just projecting at this point because it scares me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Abandonment

emmamc02's review against another edition

hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Will understands yearning like nobody else. 
The mutual pining, the tension... its everything. 

Although Rosie did make some questionable choices tbh, Will did kind of deserve better...

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, and Death of parent

Minor: Eating disorder and Suicide

bella_cavicchi's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This has my name written all over it, Daverley's stunning, understated writing the clear highlight. It feels particularly resonant when questions of what one (I) wants to do in life, à la Mary Oliver, weigh heavily.

Recommend, and with pleasure.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Medical content, and Grief

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

Minor: Pregnancy

jhansell's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child death, and Mental illness

ashley_turch's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

Moderate: Toxic relationship

lauren_may_reads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Eating disorder, and Abandonment

alexazilla's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

very similar to tomorrow x3, a realistic love story. real, raw, and emotional with a lot of life’s realities woven into a tale of fiction. reading it made me tear up not just because of the story, but in that this is how life truly is: not fair.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Self harm, Grief, and Suicide attempt