Reviews with content warning for Chronic illness - All's Well

Incredibly stressful, I'm obsessed. I think people who didn't quite click with Bunny should give this one a shot - the way that All's Well and Macbeth as stories were paralleled in the story, how Miranda was using those around her as set dressing for reclaiming the life before her injury, was amazing. I adore Mona Award.

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pagesfromhome's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Awad really went there with this one. I have literally never read a book like this one in the best way possible.

Her stream-of-consciousness first-person writing is impeccable and pulls you through Miranda's story wonderfully. You go from pitying her to hating her to questioning her to fearing her to being scared for her, and through all of it you're left wondering what in the world could happen next. Awad does an incredible job of weaving Shakespearean nods throughout the characters and the plot seamlessly and it was really fascinating to see how she used that in her craft.

This also does a wonderful job of highlighting what it is to live with chronic pain with the need to be a "good patient" and how anger and fear can get involved. All in all, I'd call this a perfect book club pick or definitely one to add to your list if you like a story that keeps you guessing at every turn.

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_annajackson_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

If you enjoy theater or anything literary, I beg you, please read this book.

This is an eloquent lens into the world of pain, especially female pain. There is a deep desire in today’s society to suppress and forget about pain.

Miranda, the main character speaks about her perpetual agony and the widespread effects that it has had on her life. She also speaks on how the once smiling faces of people whom she loved, eventually became the coldest to her and her agony. I feel like this is something that gets overlooked in media. We want to believe that the people we love the most will always be there for us, but when it comes down to it even they can experience the taxing repercussions of pain.

I also IMMENSELY appreciated the theatrical aspects of this book. I have never read something that I could so vividly imagine being a film. I’m not just talking about the possibility of it being a film, but literally imagine it scene for scene. I adored that. Awad did an excellent job of incorporating aspects from both All’s Well and The Scottish Play, into something that breathed new life into Shakespeare. With that being said YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE FAMILIAR WITH EITHER PLAY OR EVEN SHAKESPEARE TO APPRECIATE THIS STORY. Albeit, it does help especially concerning the mysterious three men and their motives, but I have not read/seen All’s Well and I never felt lost of a moment. With that being said, I do intend to brush up on both plays in order to fully appreciate this work and all the hidden easter eggs in it.

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veelaughtland's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

venice_the_vampire's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

god i love love LOVED the beginning of the book and the depictions of chronic pain so much, they way they were written were so interesting and real and relatable. i also really love that i was at times angrily on miranda’s side, while at other times i felt horrifically guilty for almost beginning to doubt her pain and deem her an unreliable narrator, like everyone else in her life clearly has. the book was a bit confusing, and the end didn’t quite satisfy me, but i still absolutely adored the book.

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