Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - We Are the Brennans

Another #12BooksRecommendedby12Friends book finished!

B̷R̷I̷N̷G̷ ✨ 𝗕𝗢𝗥𝗥𝗢𝗪 ✨ B̷Y̷P̷A̷S̷S̷

I wasn't really sure what to expect going into this; I had gotten We Are The Brennans from BOTM (Book of the Month) a while ago, and honestly other than the family having connections to (and/or living in) Ireland, I didn't remember much about the synopsis.

It's a book about family. The family you're born into, the family you choose, and the family you sometimes have to leave. It was a somewhat weird read, because while I didn't feel myself overly emotionally attached to any of the characters of the plotlines, I couldn't put the book down?

My favorite part of the book was the multiple POV narration, and especially the way the narrators switched off. Whichever character spoke last at the end of a chapter, their quote would be repeated at the beginning of the next chapter and the POV would switch to them. It had this really neat effect of having you follow the story throughout the book in a seamless and (almost interactive?) way that I really liked.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go start planning yet another fantasy trip to Ireland because I have wanted to go since I was maybe 6 years old? And that was 30 years ago? Sigh.

Content Warnings

cassielaj's review

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emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This is a complex family story full of distinct characters, dramatic secrets, and sweet moments. I loved it, and the way the story is structured made it even better. Each chapter focuses on a single character’s POV, and the present-day story is woven with flashbacks and deep internal thoughts. It’s so impressive that the author was able to craft so many characters so thoroughly and keep each perspective unique.

Spoiler

I do think that the issue of class could’ve been handled better. Billy was a bad guy, clearly, but he had struggles that weren’t addressed. Then the author also made Vivienne resentful and a “bad guy” in a similar way… everyone else got redeemed (except Billy, rip), but her one chapter didn’t do much to make me sympathetic to her, even though I wanted to be because her husband was clearly in love with another woman the whole time. Having her resent the Brennans in the same way Billy did and having the reasons they hated the Brennans be true kind of emphasized the insularity of the Brennan clan and contributed to that “Brennan worship” that they tried to criticize. It doesn’t excuse what Billy did in any way, I just think there was more opportunity for commentary than was taken. Still an excellent story

Content Warnings

shel_bay11's review

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

kimveach's review

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

I love this family and all their secrets and mistakes.

Content Warnings

sdunn13's review

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

Spoiler

For the most part I enjoyed this book, but I was really disappointed to see the victim blaming against Sunday about when she was attacked. It wasn’t addressed and corrected the way it needed to be. There was always the caveat of she drank too much or she went willing to her attacker’s room; of course, none of that matters because she is allowed to say no to sex at any point, regardless of her actions up to that point. That’s how consent works.
It is just very disappointing to still see the outdated mentality that somehow her actions excuse her attacker. It really ruined the book for me.

Content Warnings

ukponge's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Content Warnings

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