Reviews with content warning for Eating disorder - Malibu Rising

I have mixed feelings about this one. I loved diving into this world and the lives of the characters, who all felt so real. Taylor Jenkins Reid’s writing style is so attentive to the minutiae of everyday life and also the incommunicable parts of Big Feelings.

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But the ending to me felt contrived, almost too saccharine. I found it hard to believe that SO many plot lines would all be resolved in one night. I wanted things to be more open-ended than they were.

I also started getting confused by the sheer number of characters toward the end. But I loved the core family members—especially Kit—and would have been happy just to live in a world with them where nothing really happened.

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kalzeb's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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goodbyedarling's review against another edition

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adventurous tense 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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ashleyvharris's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense 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? Yes

4.0

Malibu Rising is an unexpected and heartfelt novel that confronts generational trauma, the heavy expectations of others, and our desire to love and be loved.

I owe Taylor Jenkins Reid a drink or several. I had no idea how meaningful and healing this story would be for me. Reading a story about siblings abandoned by their father was definitely triggering, but Reid handled the trauma and grief of that situation with such care and honesty.

The characters of this novel were so distinct and unique. They’re strengths and flaws, desires and fears. It all felt so natural and right. I loved that Mick was very clearly a deeply flawed and narcissistic human, but he still managed to have layers. I was worried that there would be a cheesy redemption arc for his character where he found some grudging reconciliation with his kids, but the ending was just perfect. Mick Riva setting one last fire felt so full circle.

I wish that we had gotten a bit more development with Kit’s character. The other siblings felt fairly well-defined, but Kit felt like a bit of a mystery. She feels like a character with so much potential, a force of nature. I would love to see a novel with her at the center.

The shifting focus to the novel’s background characters like Tarine, Tuesday, Ricky, etc. felt unnecessary at times. I was tempted to skip past those parts of the story to get back to the Riva siblings. These diversions were more distracting for me than anything.

Overall, this book was like a time-machine to the 80s. With its picturesque Oceanside setting and dynamic sibling characters, Malibu Rising bottles that August, end-of-summer feeling perfectly. Also, I’m totally buying a surfboard tomorrow.

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elizabethhope3's review

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emotional reflective tense 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

5.0

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grinnoir's review

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emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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jessicaludden's review

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

“June was gone. Yet here she was, living on through her children.”

I’ve said it once before and I’ll say it again, Taylor Jenkins Reid is a genius. I thought nothing could top Daisy Jones & the Six, but wow this really exceeded my expectations. Every single character was so complex. I loved every single one of them and TJR made them all feel so real. She always does that with her characters. You finish the book and can’t believe those weren’t real people. Everyone had their own internal struggles and their own relationship dynamic with other characters. I LOVED Nina. She deserves the world and I loved how her siblings finally did something for her at the end. I loved Kit. I love how bold she is and how she’s just at the start of figuring out who she is. I loved Hud. I love how loyal he is and how him and Nina always seemed to have an unspoken understanding. I loved Jay. I loved his internal conflict with the new diagnosis he had and what that meant for who he was as a person and what his measure of success is. June and Mick’s story was so tragic and as much as I hate Mick I did feel bad for him near the end of the book. TJR did a great job of making me feel the exact feelings Nina was feeling. I couldn’t help feeling a tiny bit bad for Mick as he spoke about his childhood and his regrets, but ultimately my hate for him won out. I want to go to the Riva party. TJR made it feel so real with all the side characters and their mini plot lines. It added to the chaos perfectly. Overall, I loved this so much. Definitely a top read of the year. Definitely a new favorite book of all time.

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nnennaya_'s review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional relaxing tense medium-paced

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

4.0

love love love ms taylorrrrr

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