marieos's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Alcoholism, Addiction, Violence, Chronic illness, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Car accident, Gun violence, and Infidelity
Minor: Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Abortion, Blood, and Miscarriage
kayabennett's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
firstly, i absolutely love how the events of the book all is wrapped up in one day (with the exception of the flashbacks). i like medium/fast paced books so this definitely was the one for me. i actually started reading malibu rising because the secret history was being too slow for me and i needed to read something else before i fell into a book slump.
for the characters, i am so in love with each and everyone of them (except mick, fuck you. you know what you did.) i am especially in love with june and the way she was talked about by her children made me tear up about every single time. yes, she had flaws and she knew that but they were because of mick’s actions and i hate him for that. nina-baby, you deserve the world and more (also, fuck you brandon). the way she was so selfless to care for her siblings after her mother’s death and even before it makes nina so lovable. nina had been put through so much (as so did all the other siblings) and i hope she’s living her best life in portugal.
i also want to mention that tjr’s books all being in the same universe is literally my favorite thing ever. seeing mentions of people from daisy homes and the six and evelyn hugo lights up my face.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Infidelity
Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Grief, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Blood, Gun violence, Infertility, Vomit, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Abortion, Cursing, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, and Violence
jane_austyn's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Alcohol, Infidelity, Grief, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, Gaslighting, and Suicide
grinnoir's review
- 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
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Car accident, Drug use, Pregnancy, Suicide, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Violence
jessicaludden's review
- 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
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.
Minor: Abandonment, Child abuse, Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
m4rtt4's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Injury/injury detail, Infidelity, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Sexual content, Violence, and Abandonment
Moderate: Car accident, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Suicidal thoughts
smlima1992's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Drug use
Minor: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
aharper's review
- 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? It's complicated
3.0
I wanted to love it - I was intrigued and I read it super quick - but it was only ok. The pacing is a bit weird and in the second half there were WAAYYY too many unnecessary characters added. In Part II, almost every other chapter introduced a new party goer, but nothing really came of any of them and most of them never intertwined with the actual story. Ending was eh.
LOTS OF TW! This gets dark.
TW: Parental abandonment, parental death, alcoholism, drug use, suicidal ideation
Graphic: Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
ebba94's review
- 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
4.5
Moderate: Alcohol, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Drug use, and Fire/Fire injury
jordmlord's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Alcoholism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexism and Death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Adult/minor relationship