The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
goodmorniiing'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
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Gun violence and Sexual content
stacyaj'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
4.5
Graphic: Car accident, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer
jackjcaseyv'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
4.5
As a gamer, and pop-culture lover, it hit all the right spots for me. None of the main characters are perfect, but you can see how their past traumas have shaped them.
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Sexual content, Gun violence, Violence, Classism, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, and Homophobia
Minor: Cancer and Car accident
msbedelia'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Car accident, Death of parent, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Sexism, and Chronic illness
speterson47's review against another edition
3.0
A realistic fiction, with part video game description (slight sci-fi feel). Would recommend to video game fans that enjoy a little bit of drama true to life. Sadie and Sam both go through various tragedies in their lives, sometimes together.
Graphic: Terminal illness, Sexual content, Mass/school shootings, Suicide, and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Pregnancy, Abortion, and Injury/Injury detail
rhollister'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: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Grief, Death of parent, Sexual content, Suicide, Death, and Car accident
adaora_ble's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It did such a good job of fleshing out every character it touched whilst still focusing on the MCs. Even though they were frustrating and complex and unable to hold necessary emotional conversations with each other, I still loved every single character through deep and unabiding love for each other to dispassionate hate to everything inbetween.
Marx really is the better half of Sam and Sadie, the glue that holds everything together, probably the best character from an objective standpoint and certainly the most emotionally healthy of the main trio. However, in choosing my favourite character it has to be Sam, digging into his psyche and all his neurosis and hang ups and things he just cannot say even though he truly wants to I feel so bad for him and simultaneously so mad at him and yet you get his deep fear.
Up until the moment I finished it I thought of this book as contemporary fiction, or as my high school librarian would call it 'That's Life', but when I was tagging/shelving it on StoryGraphs I was suddenly struck with the realisation that it could very well be classed as a sci-fi. Like a low stakes (and less fucked up) Black Mirror; it speculates on the effects/consequences of technology on individuals and society, even if it's something as basic as a 90s video game and not Ready Player One, it speaks to our own world and the problems we face as a society.
I can't recommend this book enough, I was fighting tears on the train at the end and even though the first part (of ten parts) was fairly slow it soon sucked me in and got me invested in even the most brief character.
Moderate: Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Car accident, Chronic illness, Homophobia, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Cancer, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, and Drug use
droggelbecher42's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Gun violence, and Mass/school shootings
Moderate: Sexual content and Suicide
danielcrogers's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, and Suicide
Moderate: Grief, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Gaslighting
adyn'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
I would recommend it to anyone and everyone given the disclaimer that it made me cry more than possibly any book has ever, at least that I can remember. But it did so in such a beautiful way that I already want to reread it even though I just finished it yesterday. So strongly recommend, but be warned. More specifically, though, I would recommend this book to:
- people who are tired of romances
- people who like games (especially video games)
- people who eat it up when a book is just possibly a little bit too artsy and pretentious
- people who like storytelling
- people who were maybe a little too into john green as a kid
- people who loved everything everywhere all at once (idk it’s a vibe thing)
- people in a quarter life crisis
- nerds, especially computer science folk
- former gifted kids
I loooove how it focuses on the complexities of friendship over any of the romantic relationships in the book. It's the perfect amount of artsy and human and relatable. This book is perfect to me.
Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, and Car accident
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Sexism, Cultural appropriation, Abortion, and Toxic relationship