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geminisoul'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Sexual content
izzy_v'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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
waytoomanybooks'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The novel takes place in the 1970s, but you need not worry about unfamiliar settings and references because Hannah makes the world around the Allbright family both richly detailed and extremely accessible.
The main character, Leni, is beautifully written. It’s so rare for an author to get a child/teen’s voice right, but Hannah nails it. Leni is thoughtful, intelligent, and sensitive; she’s a whole person. And we see her struggle and grow up in a turbulent family within a small community in a remote part of Alaska.
Though this story features many forms of abuse and domestic violence, Hannah uses a sensitive hand in the writing of it. It is believable and heart-breaking to watch Leni and her mother, Cora, both suffer at the hands of Ernt, their father and husband respectively. I love that the rest of the townsfolk stand up to Ernt and call out his behavior. I’m so used to media that features only hand-wringing bystanders. I love seeing people fighting back on behalf of Leni and Cora.
The (too many) twists of fate in the last third are terribly hard to read, partly because they’re so excruciating and partly because they require a lot of suspended disbelief. I would argue that the events in the last third take the plot outside the realm of what I see as plausible, especially considering the first two-thirds is written like a “slice of life” story.
I believe that making
My rating on the first 66.6% of the book is 4 out of 5, but it just goes off the rails in the final 33.3%. These out-there events that feel forced/crammed in is what ultimately made me decide to rate this novel a 3.5 out of 5.
It’s a weird book, but it’s packed with action and heartache in a captivating, soap opera kind of way. You can’t help but feel for the characters, even if some of the events are quite farfetched. I can’t help but want what is best Leni, and that is my litmus test for what makes for a good book.
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
ashlyncherie's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Sexism, Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, and War
marycage'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit and War
Minor: Confinement, Kidnapping, and Pregnancy
nrogers_1030's review against another edition
Maybe I'll pick it back up in the future 🤷🏻♀️
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Xenophobia, and War
Minor: Sexual content
gpfot'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
sierrabowers's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
anne_reader'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
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
veronica214's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'd recommend this for readers who liked Where the Crawdads Sing. It's set in a secluded environment, features toxic parents, and two protagonists are teenagers in love. For a similar book that's more on the thriller side, I'd recommend These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Animal death and Alcohol