babsi_222's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
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
4.25
Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of my favourite authors, I think, and I’ve only read two of her books!
So this book is about a family and their history and you really get to see into each of the siblings/ and every family members mind. they’re a family who live near the ocean and I’ve never read a book that’s about surfers, which was really cool.
So there is a famous party where every hollywood star is and like the author said in the Q&A it’s really inspired by the great Gatsby. It was quite interesting, but it just kind of felt like one of those romance movies (Love Actually), because sometimes in between the chapters about the family you have like two pages where there’s a random star who hooks up with someone else or who finds the love of their life at this party, which is just so random, but kind of fun tbh
literally all of the men in this book are red flags!!!
To be honest I’m not sure if I’m going to read ‘Carrie Soto is back’ any time soon because she does not seem like a great person in this book. I’m sure that it’s going to be interesting but I think I just don’t wanna read it right now.
Junes story makes me so mad omg :(((
There’s soooo much drama at the party btw holy shit
So this book is about a family and their history and you really get to see into each of the siblings/ and every family members mind. they’re a family who live near the ocean and I’ve never read a book that’s about surfers, which was really cool.
So there is a famous party where every hollywood star is and like the author said in the Q&A it’s really inspired by the great Gatsby. It was quite interesting, but it just kind of felt like one of those romance movies (Love Actually), because sometimes in between the chapters about the family you have like two pages where there’s a random star who hooks up with someone else or who finds the love of their life at this party, which is just so random, but kind of fun tbh
literally all of the men in this book are red flags!!!
Spoiler
Oh my God the women (June and Nina) get pushed around by them, but there’s some very good character development in the end which is everything I ever wanted while reading! God I hate Mick Riva so much how can you be such a horrible person??To be honest I’m not sure if I’m going to read ‘Carrie Soto is back’ any time soon because she does not seem like a great person in this book. I’m sure that it’s going to be interesting but I think I just don’t wanna read it right now.
Junes story makes me so mad omg :(((
There’s soooo much drama at the party btw holy shit
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Sexual harassment, Police brutality, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Child abuse, Cursing, Grief, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Vomit, Violence, Miscarriage, Gun violence, Car accident, and Outing
verachiba's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug use, Infidelity, Death of parent, Misogyny, Outing, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Car accident and Fire/Fire injury
clea's review
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
As always, Taylor Jenkins Reid mesmerized me with her writing and storytelling! I immediately got attached to the characters who are described in such a nuanced way. I was rooting for them (especially for Nina!) and felt with them. They are presented in such a reflected and substantial way, that I really feel as if they were actually existing. Their relationships and family dynamic(s) are delicately explored and although quite complicated, still relatable.
Reid's writing is very immersive, each time I'm reading one of her books, I get thrown into her world. She writes down just the perfect details you need for it to feel real (especially the surfing scenes were wonderfully immersive!).
I was just a little bit annoyed by the amount of different POVs we got at the end of the novel... They distracted from the main plot and didn't really bring a lot to the story. But that is the only (and very small) negative point! Otherwise, I really, really loved this novel and found it surprisingly funny.
And I also enjoyed the little shoutouts to the characters of her other novels ;)
Reid's writing is very immersive, each time I'm reading one of her books, I get thrown into her world. She writes down just the perfect details you need for it to feel real (especially the surfing scenes were wonderfully immersive!).
I was just a little bit annoyed by the amount of different POVs we got at the end of the novel... They distracted from the main plot and didn't really bring a lot to the story. But that is the only (and very small) negative point! Otherwise, I really, really loved this novel and found it surprisingly funny.
And I also enjoyed the little shoutouts to the characters of her other novels ;)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Death of parent, Abandonment, Addiction, Infidelity, Alcoholism, Outing, Grief, Drug use, and Alcohol
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Abortion and Car accident
deamon's review
dark
emotional
sad
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Outing
toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.5
At its core, Malibu Rising is about 4 siblings who are the children of famous singer Mick Riva and how they have grappled with abandonment, loss, and actively breaking the patterns of their parents before them. It takes place both over one night at the "Riva party" with flashback chapters (which i loved) throughout that detail their parents meeting and ultimately the early lives of the children. I personally think that chapters like this are one of TJR's main strengths. It made the book give me similar vibes to Evelyn Hugo, which makes sense given that one of the characters is one of Evelyn's husbands in that book. Speaking of which, I loved the ties the book had to its predecessor. Ever since I finished Evelyn Hugo two years ago, I've wanted more, and this felt a lot like that, though I have to say I'm more of a fan of its predecessor.
My favorite characters were definitely Nina, Kit, and June. Mick Riva deserves no rights and that's all i will say about him. I loved the family dynamic between the siblings, how they found strength in each other even in the worst circumstances. It made me really happy even when the book got sad. Something that bothered me about the book and made me take off some "points" I guess, is that there were POVs outside of the Riva family that I simply didn't care about. They didn't end up having any real relevance and filled up pages unnecessarily - in my opinion. I'm sure there were reasons for this, but it just took me out of it.
My favorite characters were definitely Nina, Kit, and June. Mick Riva deserves no rights and that's all i will say about him. I loved the family dynamic between the siblings, how they found strength in each other even in the worst circumstances. It made me really happy even when the book got sad. Something that bothered me about the book and made me take off some "points" I guess, is that there were POVs outside of the Riva family that I simply didn't care about. They didn't end up having any real relevance and filled up pages unnecessarily - in my opinion. I'm sure there were reasons for this, but it just took me out of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Racism, Pregnancy, Drug use, and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual content, Eating disorder, Car accident, Police brutality, Miscarriage, Abortion, and Outing
gracechihoski's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-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
4.75
mick riva hate club
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Drug use
Moderate: Pregnancy and Sexual content
Minor: Outing and Abortion
More...