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bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Animal cruelty
im_just_vidu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This is one of the few books that made me feel seen. It kind of felt so private sometimes.
So this is a book about a girl named Beyah, who lost her mother to overdosing. (Not a spoiler, it happens in the first chapter) So she goes for her father's house to spend the summer. Beyah is someone who had really bad childhood. She doesn't get both her parent's attention so she had to feed herself and rely on herself. Beyah doesn't have much friends due to the same reasons. Beyah decides to not to tell her father about her mother's death. Her father is married to another woman and also with a daughter called Sara. Sara's boyfriend's friend is Samson. Sara wants to Beya setup with Samson. Beya announces that she don't want to be in a relationship with anyone, since she's gonna move after the summer break.
Beya is filled with sadness due to her traumas and all the things she had to go through since she was a child. She somehow talks with Samson for a moment. This is the story about they discovering how dark both of their lives are and wanting the best for each others.
The reason I liked this book is maybe I also felt 'seen' from this book somehow. I really admire the loyalty no matter what type of obstacle they face. I felt comfort in Samson's character. That he's smiling for others but not smiling in eyes and not being able to happy because of that. I understood how they felt that their only friend was sadness and only the sadness. Not being able to peel off each others mental barriers is nicely written in the book. And also Beyah being the one who understand Samson when everyone doesn't and also she being the only one to believe him was so sad and beautiful. You know how hard is something when you've been through the same thing before. I admire Beyah for not giving up and believing the sad truth until the end. She believed on the thing she felt is true because she knows the hard truth.
I don't like that others labelling this book as a "romance". You can't see any romance in here. This is really sad and depressing book about 2 people trying to get better on their own. It's about living in an unfair society yet not blaming on it. It's about seeing the beauty in someones' eyes than their face. It's about being able to help others even though you're in a really bad situation. This is about a battle. Battle with your own demons, your past traumas and with your future self. And as the best author she is, Colleen Hoover has done a really good job. So I'm happy that I read this book.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Suicide attempt
kansxlibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Drug use, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Grief, and Death of parent
skyllarduncan's review against another edition
2.25
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Death of parent
Minor: Grief
brittanyweigandt's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Addiction and Death of parent
Moderate: Physical abuse and Sexual assault
Minor: Eating disorder
telsreadingjournal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
lamanda_quiring's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Addiction and Sexual assault
kendrakeuler's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Classism
salusgh'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: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
kdscolley's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Beyah has been taking care of herself for so long that it's hard to let other's in and trust that they aren't there to take advantage. Samson has this mysterious past that he doesn't want to talk about, but watching them learn to talk to each other, and uncover all of their secrets was one gut punch after another. It left me with tears in my eyes and more care for young characters than I've had in quite a while.
Must read.
Graphic: Death and Drug abuse
Minor: Sexual assault