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kalagrace's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Panic attacks/disorders
chloeantoinettereads'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: Death of parent, Alcohol, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, Drug abuse, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Death
livydrex's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Animal cruelty
ryyzap's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Minor: Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Animal death, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
haileyhardcover's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
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Oooh we’re gonna get honest and dark with this review, folks… buckle up or back out now!
I’ve been suicidal (always passively, and sometimes actively) since I was 6-years-old. That’s not a typo. I can very clearly remember sitting in my childhood bedroom, legs dangling off of the edge of my red bunk bed, and thinking “I’m going to kill myself.” I’ve managed to trick myself into staying alive for the last 30 years, but I can’t say it’s been easy and I’ve made a lot of choices I wish I could take back - closed a lot of doors I wish I had walked through, run through others that I should have slammed shut. In the really dark moments the thing I regret most is not just ending things when I was 6 or 16 or 26. A whole book of regrets.
The concept of The Midnight Library really appealed to me. On the edge of death, Nora is given the opportunity to address her greatest regrets and sample the lives she could have had if she’d made different choices, in the hopes of find one where she could be happy - one where she would want to keep living. Spoiler Alert:
Maybe it’s wrong for me to hate the optimistic ending, but I do. If an anti-suicide message was the goal (and of course it was, because who is out here writing pro-suicide novels?) I truly would’ve preferred the gut punch ending of Nora realizing her root life was the best one for her and still dying anyway. A “learn from this character’s mistake” kind of approach. You made your death bed, now die in it.
Disappointing ending aside, it’s not a bad book, but it’s not great either. I can’t say I particularly liked any of the characters, it’s difficult to stay grounded in a story that’s primarily spent jumping between different lives, and there were plot points that were just fully abandoned (like Hugo and the other “sliders”… why even bother with that?) but it’s an enjoyable enough concept, easy to binge, and most of the chapters are very short, which I love. I doubt I would pick this book up again, but it was a decent way to occupy my brain for a couple of days.
Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Death, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Addiction, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, and Animal death
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Cancer, Car accident, Drug abuse, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Toxic relationship, and Stalking
xgabrielle_hx's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Car accident, Alcohol, Animal death, Drug use, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Animal cruelty
xaaamyy's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Death of parent, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Car accident, and Alcoholism
Taught a real life lesson which was really beautiful!vaaalnf'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
4.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, and Animal death
Minor: Alcoholism
ssurber98'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
5.0
Moderate: Sexual assault, Mental illness, Addiction, Death, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Self harm, and Panic attacks/disorders
meaganb914's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Moderate: Mental illness and Suicide attempt
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Terminal illness, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Death of parent, Car accident, Cancer, and Animal death