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quirkyaquarian's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’m so curious about that ending as I interpreted it to be open ended. Does Mark’s call suggest she loses her resolve and stays for a man? I wanted closure damn it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
goblincat's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Racism
danajoy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I respected what this book did but I didn't enjoy reading it.
Go into this expecting unlikable characters and a lot of sex scenes. Honestly the sex scenes felt like self harm to me.
Jena was a very difficult protagonist. She's still very young but due to her previous status as a child prodigy she struggles to find any real fulfillment. It's hard to 'watch' her make bad decisions for attention.
This is very slice of life. There isn't really a plot carrying you through.
Go into this expecting unlikable characters and a lot of sex scenes. Honestly the sex scenes felt like self harm to me.
Jena was a very difficult protagonist. She's still very young but due to her previous status as a child prodigy she struggles to find any real fulfillment. It's hard to 'watch' her make bad decisions for attention.
This is very slice of life. There isn't really a plot carrying you through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Homophobia
lillicoulson's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
i found this book difficult to deal with in that there was no plot, just vibes but the vibes were depressing af. some of the writing was gorgeous and i loved the portrayal of exhaustion, burn out and emptiness that so many young people face. i feel like the origins of these feelings made them less relatable though. i also was just thinking throughout the book ‘this girl needs therapy’, but that’s never really even approached. no one suggests it to her and she never provides a reason as to why she doesn’t go. maybe it’s not considered normal, but the time frame is 2015/16/17 so i feel like the stigma is less prevalent than to suggest that nobody around her has heard of therapy, counselling or anything similar. i think the representation of mental illness can be relatable at times but the solutions the main character provides are an unhealthy portrayal of how to deal with depression. i understand that the book wouldn’t have had much of a plot if she had just gone to a psychologist, but it’s sometimes harmful to perpetuate the idea that there’s no solution out there.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Rape, and Sexual content
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual violence
miarose_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- 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
Challenging. Blunt. Unapologetic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Toxic friendship
greyhoundtales's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
hannahmayreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I basically devoured this over the weekend. It turned out to be the perfect rainy weekend read.
I liked this book and the story it tells. It is definitely one of the better “millennial angst” books that have been released (the craze started by Rooney, and with no end in sight). Jena Lin encapsulates that angst perfectly and it makes her easy to identify with, but making her a child prodigy made her interesting as a character. A wise decision that sets it apart from other characters in what seems to be a new genre. The book takes out everyday anxieties and layers them with something more extreme. The real cleverness is that it is believable - this character and her story make sense.
It felt a little overcooked at times (that show me don’t tell me thing again), but that is a hazard when reading debuts. I’m fairly confident that Jessie Tu has the writing chops to finesse her style - she is certainly one to watch.
I liked this book and the story it tells. It is definitely one of the better “millennial angst” books that have been released (the craze started by Rooney, and with no end in sight). Jena Lin encapsulates that angst perfectly and it makes her easy to identify with, but making her a child prodigy made her interesting as a character. A wise decision that sets it apart from other characters in what seems to be a new genre. The book takes out everyday anxieties and layers them with something more extreme. The real cleverness is that it is believable - this character and her story make sense.
It felt a little overcooked at times (that show me don’t tell me thing again), but that is a hazard when reading debuts. I’m fairly confident that Jessie Tu has the writing chops to finesse her style - she is certainly one to watch.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship