Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry by Joya Goffney

49 reviews

shaipanda's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful 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

4.75

I absolutely loved the journey of reading thisss
It made me laugh, it made me cry and I got so emotionally attached to the characters and the journeys they go on 
So happy I grabbed this from the bookstore after having heard such good things about it and once I started it I couldn’t put it down and absolutely binged it lol 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, Racism, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Dementia and Alcohol

Minor: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Vomit, and Classism

nokvi's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective 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

3.75

I always say this but I always rate YA more leniently because I'm not the target audience and I try to imagine how teen me would feel. (Honestly it was about 3 stars)

Honestly, Teen me would not read contemporary romance but I think if she did she would love this book. While there was very limited ugly crying and the plot was rather predictable, I truly enjoyed how this work tackled issues of race, especially internalized biases that we may hold ourselves to and how one navigates a world that they are not welcomed in. How it addressed Classism is also appropriate, as Quinn has some thoughts that had me like Girl? You sure this is the thought process you want it subscribe to?

Is it the best book for targeting these issues? No but I imagine for a teen trying to figure their lives out, especially in circumstances (not the blackmail part but operating in a world where you are othered) that Quinn find herself in, would be glad for a character that's so relatable. 

I'm also a sucker for unlikely friendships and finding the persons that were meant for you, there's nothing more beautiful that community and with what happening to Hattie, I'm glad Quinn

found a friend in Livvy

The journey of self acceptance and

removal of dependency from her journal

is wonderful and I'm actually very happy with the third act and the establishment of boundaries

If she had forgiven Carter immediately I would have been most upset

Excuse Me while I ugly cry is a beautiful journey of self acceptance, setting personal boundaries and carrying yourself out of your comfort zone, the importance of community and family amongst things. While I do find it somewhat immature (for my age) in terms of its target audience I firmly believe it's a strong contender 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Dementia, Toxic friendship, and Classism

daenerystargaryen's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Dementia, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, and Alcohol

Minor: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Cultural appropriation

zombiezami's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

I ended up liking this more than I thought I would. The characters were endearing, they had excellent development, and the conflict worked well to propel the plot forward.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, Racism, Outing, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

beegster16's review against another edition

funny lighthearted reflective 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Racism and Classism

Minor: Sexual harassment

bookishkellyn's review against another edition

adventurous reflective

• 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

Quinn was not at all beating the oreo allegations until about midway into the book, and I had to fight the urge to DNF. But as her new connections with the side characters (Carter, Auden, Olivia ‘Livvy’) developed and her links with her old circle (Matt, Destany, Gia) unraveled, she became a much more enjoyable character. Her inner thoughts in every chapter were arranged into mental lists that almost sounded like poetry, and Carter’s notes at the end were a nice touch.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

Moderate: Racism, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Classism

Minor: Racial slurs and Dementia

lmcarr0314's review against another edition

emotional mysterious tense 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

4.0

I genuinely enjoyed the book. This young adult novel is about high school friendship and the difficulty with race and the difficulty with teens' views of themselves. This book talks about pretty difficult topics and does it pretty well as well as looking at the Young romance blooming between two characters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, Racism, and Alcohol

Moderate: Death, Dementia, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Death

zoe_archambault's review against another edition

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

cute fluff but also with some substance. lovable characters and nice plot. I don’t love the title though I feel like there were so many more prominent things that could have been made into the title to make it more catchy / relevant

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Terminal illness, and Lesbophobia

dai_renee410's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying and Racism

Moderate: Racial slurs, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Vomit and Dementia

hollowhallow13's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Dementia, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, and Cultural appropriation