Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

316 reviews

sheriffrockyraccoon's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-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

3.0

I am not normally a contemporary romance person, but I was looking for something light and this book has been recommended over and over by everyone I know! Tia Williams creates such a fun story, it’s a little corny and a little silly but it makes up for that in heart.

I was reading a book club edition of the book, which included a small interview from Williams that explained how much she loves putting pop culture references in her writing. Personally, for me, it takes me a bit out of it. While I thought it was done well in the 2004 chapters, the dialogue between Eva and Audre sometimes made me cringe only because I’ve totally missed both generations at the time this was written. Nevertheless, I still really enjoyed this book and felt so strongly for the characters. 

I’d recommend this book to any fans of contemporary romance. It was a lot darker than I expected, so I think there might be a little bit of something for dark romance fans (but nothing too extreme). 
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daniche979's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

4.75

A lovely, deep, dark, honest, funny romance. Full of trauma, growth, and deep connection. 

Knocking off a bit because of Ty - my heart broke and I may not recover. 
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emilyswiggle's review against another edition

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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

3.5

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maireadryan's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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

3.75

I had complicated feelings about this book. I thought Tia Williams did an incredible job portraying pain and what it’s like to live with a disability, addiction, recovery, depression, self harm, and the toll of poverty on a person. I enjoyed seeing Eva and Shane’s growth throughout the story and their deep connection felt palpable. However, the side characters were all so extreme in their personalities that they seemed more like caricatures of people rather than supporting characters with substance. Additionally, the languages and pop culture references really date the story and things like the use of social media (twitter, instagram, etc) seem exaggerated. Every time it was mentioned it took me out of the story. I wish we got more of a conclusive ending and saw more of Shane and Eva as an adult couple. The ending left me dissatisfied and wanting more. 
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annaeslane's review against another edition

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dark medium-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

4.5

I had been warned that this novel shouldn’t be classified as a true romance novel. And while romance was a large part of the book, the darker and more complex issues that Eva and Shane face throughout their lives, together and apart are what made the book so worth the read.  
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saskiahill's review against another edition

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medium-paced

5.0

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openbookheartmind's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced
  • 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

4.5

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basketkaceee's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced
  • 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

4.0

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not_another_ana's review against another edition

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challenging funny lighthearted sad medium-paced
  • 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

1.5

And maybe that was what real, adult love was. Being fearless enough to hold each other close no matter how catastrophic the world became. Loving each other with enough ferocity to quell the fears of the past. Just fucking being there.

When Eva was a teenager, she had a wild and passionate week with Shane. It was wild, drug fueled, and life changing. But that's all in the past, and she is now the successful author of an erotic book series and the mother of a precocious daughter. However, when Shane returns, now also a famous award winning author, and they cross paths for another seven days Eva will have to reckon with her past and consider if maybe this time is the right time for the two of them.

I knew I was doomed to dislike this from the moment I read the opening lines, but I persevered since this was a book club read. There's just something about the way this is written that never clicked with me. The writing is too reference heavy in a way that already makes it dated and lackluster. Tia Williams has this odd habit of describing everything with brand names that was distracting and embarrassing. Here's an example: "... when his phone vibrated on his arm (where it was slotted in his Nathan iPhone armband, rated Best Accessory of 2019 by RunnersWorld.com).", like am I reading a novel or is this Vogue magazine trying to sell me overpriced shit I don't need.

Then there's the characters. Eva and Shane are the only ones who seem realistic, and sure they're the protagonists and we get to see their pasts and inhabit their minds, so the contrast with everybody else in this book is huge. Everyone else was caricaturesque, the closet to a stereotype the author could get her hands on. You have these two broken people trying to reconnect and be emotionally honest only for a side character to pop and talk about wacky shit regarding vaginas or something else wildly out of place. And what was up with the mega cringe fans and NPCs being full on tiktok braindead? Excruciating to read. Speaking of which... AUDRE. I have a personal beef with that fictional child. She was supposedly twelve years old but read like a much younger kid, she was not funny nor endearing but closer to a conservative parody of gen z kids. In fact I was CONVINCED that the author was childless and had never interacted with a small human being and was flabbergasted when I read her thank you at the end to her actual in real life daughter.

That's what haunted me while reading this book, the tone. It swung wildly like a turnstile, and the discrepancy soured me on the whole matter. The opening lines have a funny jokey tone, they're light and cheeky, only to grow dark when we revisit the past and then back to the jokes and the caricatures and raunchyness. I wish the author had just focused on the main couple and deleted all the extra povs from side characters, the brand mentions, the annoying child, because the core relationship could have been good. Then there's the seven days gimmick that didn't come across all that well to me, I feel like it was a mistake to gloss over the seven days in the past even if you can excuse the narration growing hazy due to the drug use and trauma. 

And my last big complaint has to do with the ending.
There was no need to kill Ty off, we didn't know him well enough for his death to be devastating (plus he was getting mentioned a bit too much for my drama senses not to tingle) and had no time to really sit with the grief his death cause Shane considering it happens when there's only 10% of the book left. It also leaves a bit of a sour taste in my mouth after the author has a scene explicitly calling out publishers for only wanting books that exploit black characters' situations.
It wasn't really satisfactory to me.
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historianvik's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced
  • 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

Absolutely loved this book! It had everything for me, from real world issues to smut. Often authors don't know how to write children but Williams did a fantastic job with pre-teen and teenagers perspectives. The character growth felt real and true. Loved all the imagery and descriptions.
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