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cr_valentine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Cursing, Drug use, Incest, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Toxic friendship
everythingeatsandiseaten's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
if you think this book is romanticizing any of its content i’m afraid you didn’t get it. it frustrated me so badly at times but the journey and narration is so integral to the overall message. i totally understand how uncomfortable it is to read, but i think that’s what gives it its power and driving force.
after reading i’m thinking about jenny— what her place was in the story, why we’re never explicitly told what went down between her and vanessa. i’m also wondering about vanessa’s parents as individual characters; i found it interesting when we had a glimpse of her dad’s life at the hospital and wanted to understand them as more complex, real people than simply the main character’s parents.
i would say this book didn’t add much diversity / add much new to the overarching topic or genre (if you could call it that?), but did provide a very provocative perspective on the matter, which was very interesting and refreshing to read.
please check trigger warnings!! i believe my list is extensive but correct me if i‘m mistaken.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Suicide and Vomit
Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
mmtrue's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Vomit, and Toxic friendship
rchulin1'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
david_slack110507's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Vanessa is such an interesting character because she goes against the typical depiction of a victim being that she is not squeaky clean or 'good' and aware of what has been done to her but instead she isn't an incredible person, often being quite rude to those around her as a result of what has happened to her as well as also being adamant that what she and Strane had was "love" rather than acknowledging the grooming and abuse that took place and I think portraying Vanessa this way made her avoid becoming a cliche of a character that is only defined by their trauma or what has happened to them. It really is tough to see Vanessa first be so obviously taken advantage of and manipulated, through our viewpoint, and then continue to go through life seeing the relationship as loving to the point of putting down other women with similar stories as well as the women that come out against Strane over what he did to them. I really liked how the book also tackled some questions about the treatment of victims such as them being defined by what happened to them and nothing more as well as also this expectation that they should come forward about what has happened to them as soon as they can to help the cause or the movement and I think it allows the reader to take their own stance on whether or not they agree with how victims are treated in the media and by others when their trauma is made public.
Strane is a truly despicable character and I hated him and this hate didn't just come about because he is a groomer as that would elicit hate from me already but the way that Kate Elizabeth Russell writes him is incredibly well done as he is even more hateable due to how manipulative he is and how unapologetic he is in his actions and what he has done, even going so far as to blame Vanessa for making him fall in love with her, a teen with no actual power (even lacking the power to consent at times during the book), as if it isn't his own fault. The continued hold he had over Vanessa to the point that she even wanted to try and replicate what their relationship was like with her professor later on in her life shows just how much he messed her up and I'm so glad that the book didn't try and be sympathetic to him because he doesn't deserve any. The book allows him to be complex such as him being emotional and open to Vanessa almost like a normal relationship as well as being aware of what he is doing without ever portraying him as someone who is good but has just done a bad thing. The resolution to his character and the investigation into his allegations being unresolved was very fitting for how many victims don't end up getting any resolution or any justice even with Strane's suicide in the face of these allegations, there lacks a feeling of comeuppance over what he has done.
I really liked the topics and themes that this book deals with and with listening to this as an audiobook, Grace Gummer did an excellent job at bringing to life Vanessa as well as all the other characters and I didn't have any faults with her performances or really the book as a whole other than it sort of being a book you can only read once due to how heavy and disturbing it can be and the lack of a big revelation may disappoint some people but it feels true to life. I found myself researching more into the process that Russell wrote this book including responses to the backlash/polarising opinions that have come about due to its publication as well as the additional chapter in the audiobook featuring an interview between Russell and Gummer as well as the book's editor about the book and I found them all really interesting.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Stalking, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Infertility
hiraeth_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
_david_'s review against another edition
- 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
5.0
I've never before found such a good story which shows why to the grooming victim, it doesn't seem like an unbalanced relationship any more than if they were both adult. As an adult it is very easy to understand why grooming is disgusting, but this book uses its point of view to show how teenagers may experience it. More importantly, how careful you need to be with talking to a victim.
I really am thankful how the author made the sex scenes feel off, eventhough it wasn't necessary for the story itself. I would feel disgusted if instead I would read about a teenager having sex with an adult and enjoying it fully.
I could talk about this book for days, it's just so good. My only confusion at first was why the narrator didn't realise that the groomer was being manipulative, eventhough flashbacks revealed that she already had doubts in the moments themselves. However, this was explained by two moments. The first
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, and Child abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
Very graphic descriptions of physical child abuse are mentioned in the last few pages, around p. 351 in the text starting from "Bridget moves back to Rhode Island". You can skip to the next alinea (2 pages further) without missing anything.platypusinrainboots's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
edietz22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
ziggypop's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Self harm, Suicide, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death and Vomit