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gabi272's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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? N/A
5.0
l888nightreader's review
4.0
this book made me feel so many emotions, sometimes more than one at once. i’ve always thought that as long as you feel *something* while reading (pleasure, joy, or even annoyance & fatigue) that it can never be a bad book. books are meant to make you feel, whatever that may be.
i felt so much reading this novel. heartbreak, uncomfortableness, annoyance, anger, and numbness. truly… this book was a rollercoaster. it sets the stage in the fifties and makes its way to a split narrative story set in a different time period, the nineties. patrick, writing in the 50s, adores his policeman, tom burgess. marion, writing in the 90s, also adores her policeman, tom burgess. what a love triangle this is except it’s really only between two people. the third person not understanding this, though…
the homophobia in this book is subtle but present. and even more so is the internalized homophobia in this book. these two wrapped in one bring us to all the emotions i felt. however, this book was still wonderful and enjoyable. i felt so attached to this book and these characters that i felt as though i knew them and wanted to grab them sternly and scream “do you not get it?!”
well worth it and very excited (of course) to see the on-screen adaptation
i felt so much reading this novel. heartbreak, uncomfortableness, annoyance, anger, and numbness. truly… this book was a rollercoaster. it sets the stage in the fifties and makes its way to a split narrative story set in a different time period, the nineties. patrick, writing in the 50s, adores his policeman, tom burgess. marion, writing in the 90s, also adores her policeman, tom burgess. what a love triangle this is except it’s really only between two people. the third person not understanding this, though…
the homophobia in this book is subtle but present. and even more so is the internalized homophobia in this book. these two wrapped in one bring us to all the emotions i felt. however, this book was still wonderful and enjoyable. i felt so attached to this book and these characters that i felt as though i knew them and wanted to grab them sternly and scream “do you not get it?!”
well worth it and very excited (of course) to see the on-screen adaptation
xlivmoorhouse's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.5
loversliterary's review against another edition
4.5
reread 09/06/24 - “for a policeman, youre very romantic. for an artist, youre very afraid.” </3
sarahsulllivan's review against another edition
4.0
I think I could prob give this a 4.5 just because i enjoyed the reading process so much. Hadn't read a physical book in a while. I really enjoyed the characters voices and the writing. I am very excited for the movie and very interested to see what plotline they'll use to format the movie. I kind of wish I read it before the movie was cast so I could imagine Tom as someone other than Harry. Harry isn't as big of a person as I would've imagined Tom to be. And they made it such a big deal that Marion's hair is red. Emma has short blonde hair. Not that it will ruin the movie but I think it would've been a nice touch to keep it.
I'll be back once the movie releases this fall to compare the 2:)
I'll be back once the movie releases this fall to compare the 2:)
takeitezy's review against another edition
3.0
(3.5)
... Bref, It's the story of someone who hurts another person, who in turn hurts someone else, and so on.
I can't say I didn't enjoy my reading; on the contrary, I was really emotionally invested in it. And frustrated. From the first page to the last one. And I still don't know if this is proof that the book is really good or not.
The characters were realists, probably well thought out as well.
On multiple occasions, I had to remember the historical context and the reality behind every single choice they made; but that was not enough to make them lovable. Especially Tom.
Let's set the record straight : I'm still convinced by the choice to write the story from the point of view of Patrick and Marion... It was a really good bet, but dammit. Despite their love for Tom and the incredible portrait they made of him, he's probably still one of the least endearing characters I've ever seen. An incredibly selfish coward who deserved none of them.
I tried. I REALLY tried, but I never found any qualities in him that explained their adoration.
Exception his beauty. I guess that's enough.
He destroyed the lives of so many people; including his own. It was just sad.
And Marion was barely better than him.
Bref. Like I said ; It's the story of someone who hurts another person, who in turn hurts someone else, and so on.
A good book with good characters... in their own way.
... Bref, It's the story of someone who hurts another person, who in turn hurts someone else, and so on.
I can't say I didn't enjoy my reading; on the contrary, I was really emotionally invested in it. And frustrated. From the first page to the last one. And I still don't know if this is proof that the book is really good or not.
The characters were realists, probably well thought out as well.
On multiple occasions, I had to remember the historical context and the reality behind every single choice they made; but that was not enough to make them lovable. Especially Tom.
Let's set the record straight : I'm still convinced by the choice to write the story from the point of view of Patrick and Marion... It was a really good bet, but dammit. Despite their love for Tom and the incredible portrait they made of him, he's probably still one of the least endearing characters I've ever seen. An incredibly selfish coward who deserved none of them.
I tried. I REALLY tried, but I never found any qualities in him that explained their adoration.
Exception his beauty. I guess that's enough.
He destroyed the lives of so many people; including his own. It was just sad.
And Marion was barely better than him.
Bref. Like I said ; It's the story of someone who hurts another person, who in turn hurts someone else, and so on.
A good book with good characters... in their own way.
_01molly's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- 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
2.0