Reviews tagging Emotional abuse

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin

44 reviews

aabubuyog's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gaslighting, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Gun violence

Minor: Abortion

maidinnah's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's hard to summarize how much I loved this expansive, intricately-written novel. Stellar beyond imagination, Tomorrow is about more than a duo of video game creatives who strike gold -- it's a multi-layered story about a relationship built on shared passions, containing universes within universes to immerse yourself into. Zevin deftly weaves between realities, virtual or otherwise, to show how life can be relentless in its imperfections, but, like video games, can offer infinite opportunities for reconciliation, revival, and reinvention. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Homophobia, Injury/injury detail, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Ableism, and Suicide

Minor: Abortion, Mental illness, Drug use, and Panic attacks/disorders

manonh90's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I loved this book so much! Great characters, cozy feelings mixed with heavy topics, and a nice insight into the gaming industry. It's full of symbolism and details too,

Spoiler

the chapters in the part were Sam and Sadie drift apart being separated in parts a and b was -brilliant-, for example

. Great read, would highly recommend! Do mind the trigger warnings though. 
The design of the book itself was nice too: beautiful cover, and the book lies open beautifully. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Medical content, Mental illness, Death, Death of parent, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/injury detail, Medical trauma, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Toxic friendship, Cancer, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Vomit, and Violence

lilybearillini3's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

• 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

5.0

This is easily one of the best books this year, if not the best fiction.  There were many points when I was moved to tears.  It is absolutely beautifully written and the narrator's voice (for the audiobook) was perfect and calming.  

I honestly don't know how to write a review for this and do it justice, I am at a loss of words.  It is a story of great friendship, love, and trials.  Every character had their complexities and were not always, if at all, likeable

Spoiler

except Marx, Marx is perfect

, but that is reality.

There was never a dull point of this book, I was interested and engaged the entire time.  The choice to show their friendship over decades was refreshing and I also really liked that we didn't switch POVs every chapter, I feel like that concept has been played out.  The video game nerd in me loved that the author did their research on video game history and what it takes to make video games.  While I don't like the miscommunication trope, I didn't find myself frustrated.  I understood why they weren't communicating because the characterization was so well done.

I normally don't go into books with expectations, but John Green said it was one of his favorite books of this year, so the need to read it was urgent.  John Green didn't let me down.  It was truly an honor to read Sadie, Sam, and Marx's journey.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, Ableism, Vomit, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Homophobia, Injury/injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Transphobia

Moderate: Racism, Sexual content, Abortion, Drug use, and Cultural appropriation

Minor: Antisemitism and Terminal illness

iinavarro's review

emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Suicide, Death of parent, Grief, Death, Racism, and Murder

deetabz's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Suicide, Injury/injury detail, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Blood, Car accident, Death, Violence, Homophobia, Hate crime, and Murder

Moderate: Antisemitism, Body horror, Death of parent, Drug use, Medical content, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Ableism, Emotional abuse, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Classism, Alcohol, Cancer, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Vomit, and Cultural appropriation

hannalizzy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

This book was so beautifully written. The story plays out like an actual life, full of its raging beauty and sharp ugliness. I read it at the recommendation of John Green, and I can see why he enjoyed it. It has a bit of his poetic flair, and the characters have their unique quirks like his do. The characters are richly complex, and somehow lovable despite their very apparent flaws.  

I wonder how I will feel about the ending after I’ve had more time to think about it. It felt like it lacked some of the finality I was hoping for in terms of Sadie and Sam’s relationship. I also felt like Sam and Sadie’s fights became a little too repetitive, but of course, c’est la vie. 

I always love stories of characters encountering grief, loss, and depression in its most potent form and still figuring out how to manage to continue on. I think those kinds of triumphs are so important to read about in an age where poor mental health feels like a largely universal experience.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Mental illness, Gun violence, Death of parent, Death, Toxic relationship, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Injury/injury detail, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Hate crime, Car accident, Adult/minor relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Gaslighting, Sexual content, and Sexism

Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Abortion, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, and Emotional abuse

literarylion's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I really really liked this. 

Pros:

• Creative storytelling, well-paced; I haven't devoured a book like this for a long time
• Incredible character development -- even minor characters are nuanced and three-dimensional
• Innovative plot and setting -- a perspective we don't often see

Cons:

• There was some pretty blatant borrowing from A Little Life, but I love that book, so! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Racism, Death of parent, Murder, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Car accident, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Blood, Death, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Violence, and Vomit

isleoflinds's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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

2.5

I went into this book with mixed expectations. I tried reading it when it was first released, but couldn't get into it. When it started getting a lot of attention, I heard a negative review for it that made it sound really interesting, so I took another shot. As an ace person who is pretty steeped in nerd culture, I was really excited for a story sold as "two friends who were often in love -- but never lovers." To that end, I was not disappointed. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow delivered all the gaming nostalgia and a heart-tugging story about a different kind of love. However, there were elements of the book - especially the second half -  that were tedious and, at least to me, undercut a lot of the first half seemed to build up to. 

I thought that the characters - Sadie and Sam - were really well-rounded and flawed, but believable people. I was disappointed in the development of the character Marx, who felt most often like a plot device despite also appearing to be almost as significant as Sam and Sadie. Many of the tropes included about halfway through also felt unnecessary and I think a lot of the tension between Sadie and Sam could have happened without employing them. In general, I think Sadie's story was marred by too many gender-related difficulties. I know that being a woman in tech (now, but especially in the 90s) was difficult, but the bulk of the harm she experienced wasn't even related to her work, and I just wish we could have seen her face other issues. 

The structure of the book was incredibly compelling - it is built around the vague idea that each "part" is its own game. Especially in the first half of the book, I could really feel the themes aligning with the structure of the book in an intriguing way. The story took a lot of turns in the second half that were just not for me (

Spoiler

miscommunication trope, two accidental pregnancy tropes for the same character, dead baby daddy, and just a general waste of what could have been a really enlightening use of the NPC chapter concept.

) and I do think it affected my reading. The execution of Part IV was by far my favorite use of the novel's video game structure, however, and made the closeout of the story more satisfying.

Overall, I think that Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow had great bones for a story, I just wish it had been a little shorter and/or that it had spent more time considering the significance of Marx. In a story about the complex ways that people can love one another, Marx was central to this, and making <spoilers>the NPC</spoilers> seemed more of an afterthought to be profound rather. 

My final very small complaint is the little statement at the end about <spoilers>"this generation thinking their whole personality is their trauma." I am a millennial, so perhaps this very Gen X sentiment just isn't for me, but in 2022, the inclusion of this bit feels quite purposeful. It was said and largely abandoned, squeezed in at the end and unexplored. Why say something that significant and then end the book with "oh I guess maybe our trauma made us who we are too... or maybe not!" Trauma use colloquially often refers to 'the difficult things I have experienced in my life that give me perspective on the world and how I interact with it.' Perhaps this is nuanced, but it just felt quite dismissive and not necessary.</spoilers>

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gaslighting, Sexism, Terminal illness, Torture, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Confinement, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Injury/injury detail, Mental illness, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Classism, Cultural appropriation, Drug use, and Sexual violence

thechadow's review

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, Suicide, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Emotional abuse, Injury/injury detail, and Pregnancy

Minor: Vomit, Sexism, Cancer, Abortion, Cursing, Blood, and Racism