wviellevoye's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
hiltzmoore's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a combination of ridiculous stereotypes of Californians added to a fairly accurate depiction of a marriage on the brink. While I didn't really agree with the ending, I have to hand it to Keyes for showing how a failing marriage can be a two way street, even when one spouse is cheating. The L.A. scenes were all really silly and didn't resonate at all with me, so I am giving 3 stars for the flashback scenes as well as the interactions with the Walsh family, which remains silly as ever.
caseymalsam's review against another edition
2.0
Slow and dated with undertones of homophobia and racism... :(
jilljaracz's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
susannahmiller's review against another edition
2.0
This book was basically just filler. like everything in it was irrelevant because it started with her breaking up with Gav because he had an affair and then in the end she just forgave him and they get back together. the middle was her just fancying people then finding out they didn't love her and just wanted a one-night stand so it feels like she just gave up looking for someone better and decided she was okay being with Gav just because he apologized... Honestly, this just made me like mammy Walsh more cause she said don't go back to him if he did that once he will do it again and Maggie was like try and stop me but honestly, she just seemed like such a pushover too me and the ending was so random and dumb.
narniaru's review against another edition
3.0
It was okay but on the whole quite long and forgettable. Also, the attitudes to Lesbianism really dates the book making it cringy at times. While I'm sure Keyes didn't mean for Irish people to come off a bit backwards, reading this in 2018 that's the impression you get.
cowdisease125's review against another edition
2.0
So my last review of 2019 was a Marian Keyes book so how's this for symmetry that my first review of 2020 would be one too.
The thing is, in my last review, I said that anyone who would write a negative review for any of her books should give their heads a wobble but now I'm kind of regretting that because, well, I sort of have to give this a negative one.
I think every author who has an extensive catalogue of books is entitled to have a runt and this is the case for Angels. A runt if ever there was one. I mean, it had all this things that I normally enjoy about her books. You know? Easy to follow if not predictable story and her sense of humour. Grand. But, for me, that's the problem. There are themes and storylines in the book that didn't fit with the easy-going nature of the book. To the point it felt borderline-offensive and glib. Which doesn't make sense at all because I've read four of her other books and she handled some similar and some vastly different but still emotional themes with a big more oomph and sensitivity. Not that she was insensitive I just felt like she tried to lighten the mood a bit too early after certain events took place.
Wow. Reviews are difficult to write when you try to avoid spoilers...
The thing is though, I'd have probably forgiven the above if it wasn't for the lesbian dissing. That stuff baffled me. I don't care when the thing was first published, "licking a mackerel" and "lezzer" and all that garbage - nah.
The thing is, in my last review, I said that anyone who would write a negative review for any of her books should give their heads a wobble but now I'm kind of regretting that because, well, I sort of have to give this a negative one.
I think every author who has an extensive catalogue of books is entitled to have a runt and this is the case for Angels. A runt if ever there was one. I mean, it had all this things that I normally enjoy about her books. You know? Easy to follow if not predictable story and her sense of humour. Grand. But, for me, that's the problem. There are themes and storylines in the book that didn't fit with the easy-going nature of the book. To the point it felt borderline-offensive and glib. Which doesn't make sense at all because I've read four of her other books and she handled some similar and some vastly different but still emotional themes with a big more oomph and sensitivity. Not that she was insensitive I just felt like she tried to lighten the mood a bit too early after certain events took place.
Wow. Reviews are difficult to write when you try to avoid spoilers...
The thing is though, I'd have probably forgiven the above if it wasn't for the lesbian dissing. That stuff baffled me. I don't care when the thing was first published, "licking a mackerel" and "lezzer" and all that garbage - nah.
kristiclear's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5