mabbysampkins's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Rape, Racial slurs, Incest, Misogyny, Homophobia, and Suicidal thoughts
james1star's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
- Fatphobia - there sees to be quite a few references to certain characters (most notably Leroy at the start of the book) being fat and this is viewed in a negative light, it’s also not addressed as the book (and Molly) develops
- Anti-butchness (is that a word?) - I did find Molly to view the Butch lesbians in a more negative way and once saying something like what’s the point when you could be with a man, it did develop to be a bit more nuanced and I know the author portrays herself as not the most feminine so it’s likely just the character and reflective of the time
- Ageism - Molly seems to not really like or appreciate the older queers all that much, I get most younger people don’t and we leave her around twenty five so obviously her opinion will change but it’s a point
- Rape & incest - the parts with Polina and later her daughter Alice were quite uncomfortable to read, when Molly manages to get Polina to have sex with her it’s quite forceful despite her later enjoying the act and it being done to release something she’s been repressing, that being said it’s still not right, later Alice thinks her mum wants to have sex with her and this whole discussion around incest was just totally unnecessary, weird and not handled the best I feel
Moderate: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Death, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Racism, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Grief, Bullying, Abortion, Religious bigotry, Incest, Sexism, and Cursing
nataliebootlah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Homophobia and Child abuse
Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Sexual content, and Misogyny
kelelelou'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Spoiler
“incest” within the first few chapters as well as rape scenes between the MC and one of her love interests ? not really 😭Moderate: Racial slurs, Misogyny, Abandonment, Fatphobia, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, and Incest
erinwolf1997'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
4.5
Graphic: Homophobia, Death of parent, Cursing, Sexual content, Lesbophobia, Sexism, and Misogyny
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Rape, Classism, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, and Terminal illness
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Infidelity, Antisemitism, and Cancer
emilybr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Misogyny, Lesbophobia, and Homophobia
Minor: Abortion, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault
thaliareads'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
4.0
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Death, Bullying, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol
It would take forever to list all the reasons for the warnings I tagged, but it basically boils down to being an unavoidable fact of following a gay woman in a time when being both made you targeted and viewed as less than others. However, to clarify, the author never comes off as sexist or homophobic, it's just a part of the MCs experience. The only thing I'll add is that there is a lot of stereotyping at certain points in the book and I'm not sure if that was meant as a comment on the way society viewed these groups during that time period or if it was the author themselves. To me this didn't seem like it was ever in a way that was harmful, just improper.patchhadley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Sexism, Biphobia, Racism, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Cursing, Cancer, Drug use, and Forced institutionalization
tinstae's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Misogyny, Cursing, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, and Child abuse
Moderate: Racial slurs, Death of parent, Racism, and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, Incest, and Adult/minor relationship
kerrence30'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
4.0
I can understand why this was perceived as shocking at the time of first publishing, not because of the theme of lesbianism, but the tone and word choice is often harsh, blunt and direct. There are some explicit scenes which are not written akin to a modern day romance novel. The main character is rightly unapologetic in how she lives her life, with a hint of aiming to intentionally shock.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Cursing, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Sexism, Abandonment, Body shaming, Classism, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Toxic relationship