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chris_reads's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Medical content, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Grief, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma
maecave15's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Medical content, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Alcohol
kekepania's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Car accident and Fire/Fire injury
moomin_22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Medical content and Car accident
amberlily13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
rugrat306's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Some of the topics covered by this book are quite hard hitting. It wasn't the happy, romance, easy read I was expecting. It has a happy ending and overall I enjoyed it, but it did lead me to have a nightmare which was unexpected.
Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death and Abandonment
a_stylish_bookworm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
batata's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
spearly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Before I Saw You is a dual perspective contemporary romance about two people, Alfie and Alice, who occupy beds beside each other in a rehabilitation ward in the hospital. Over the course of the novel, through ridiculous jokes and deep chats, the two end up forming a bond. The catch: Alice was badly injured at work, and she hides herself behind the curtain that surrounds her bed.
Contrary to the blurb of Before I Saw You, I would not call this book a romance. Yes, it had romance, but the book went deeper are darker than your average adult contemporary novel. Most surprisingly, to me, were the deep themes of mental illness, self-acceptance, and childhood trauma.
Usually, when an author throws in some tragic past for their characters, or some half-assed attempt at dealing with deep themes in the context of a light, fluffy romance, I roll my eyes. It rarely works. It's nearly always a surface-level addition to add "depth" to otherwise generic characters.
That was NOT the case here. This was a story about 2 people who go through some traumatic things, who struggle to accept their lives as they are now, who are deeply wounded because of their pasts, and who seek comfort in each other during their recovery. It just happens to have a romance in there, too.
I adored the way Houghton handled
And my heart broke for Alice. I could feel her insecurities, the hollowness she feels
Of course, there were things that disappointed me about the story, mainly
So really, this isn't a romance. If you read this with the expectation that it is, you might be disappointed. And don't get me wrong, I still fell in love with Alice and Alfie's relationship. But what really stood out to me was the care Houghton put into the sensitive themes of the novel.
Definitely worth a read, and keep some tissues nearby!
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Car accident
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
Minor: Blood
taleofabibliophile's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Medical trauma, and Car accident
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Medical content and Grief