Scan barcode
stuckinafictionaluniverse's review against another edition
2.0
Books that make me uncomfortable are always the hardest to rate. This is one of them.
2015 is definitely the year of books that mess with my head and leave me conflicted.
Up until 75%, I absolutely hated this.
I was with Theo, watching her every wrong move and her mess-ups, as she spiraled further and further down.
This is an extremely frustrating book. I couldn't stand our MC, she was so annoying that I wanted to DNF.
Never has it been so difficult for me to care for a character. Theo is very flawed and unlikable.
Not Parker Fadley straight-up bitchy, with humor and a small lovable side to her, but the straight-up horrible person with few redeeming qualities.
Theo cheats, lies, pushes everyone away and is self-centered.
She makes a billion and one mistakes, hurts so many people, and I did not like her.
It’s easy if there’s a villain in a story, one you can just point fingers at and hate as much as everyone else. But when the most unlikable person in the book is the one who’s telling it, how do you make it work?
In the end Theo is the one who has been hurt, the one who has fucked up so many things because other people ruined her.
It wasn’t until the last 50 pages that our narrator felt human to me. What happened to her was horrible and sad and far too real. That’s when she grew immensely and gained my sympathy, but not enough for me to like the book.
This is not a mystery: it’s a contemporary story about the struggle of one girl who is afraid to speak up. It’s about what the silence means and how it can change things.
It’s about a girl who makes poor decisions and hurts people because she herself has been hurt. It was so frustrating that I sometimes felt like throwing it out the window.
Based on the cover and title Pointe appears to be a story of ballet.
Based on the blurb, it seems like a mystery dealing with kidnapping.
In reality, the main focus lies elsewhere.
What’s next is a big spoiler, but it’s something I honestly wish I’d known starting this book, and it can be very triggering for some people.
At its core, this deals with two very heavy topics at the same time, one that you know right from the start, and one that is later revealed: eating disorders and.
Pointe isn’t pitched as the story of a, it’s pitched as a kidnapping story and a mystery, and you will be very disappointed if you expect that.
These two themes are described rather graphically and it is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking. This author has some balls to write about it in such a convincing and detailed way, but I was personally disturbed by it rather than emotionally affected by it.
Please don’t read this if you don’t consider yourself mature enough or can be triggered by the topics I just stated. I haven’t experienced any of them, and I still felt very unsettled and shocked by the content.
It made me uncomfortable, scared, sad and most of all angry.
This wasn’t necessarily a bad book, but it was difficult to read and I think I would’ve enjoyed it more if I hadn’t been so surprised by the actual plot.
It messed with my head, because we have a TSTL heroine throughout most of the book, whose reasons I completely understood at the end. I can't tell if Theo's character was purposely written as unlikable so you'd be forced to sympathize with her despite her flaws. I just don't know.
2015 is definitely the year of books that mess with my head and leave me conflicted.
Up until 75%, I absolutely hated this.
I was with Theo, watching her every wrong move and her mess-ups, as she spiraled further and further down.
This is an extremely frustrating book. I couldn't stand our MC, she was so annoying that I wanted to DNF.
Never has it been so difficult for me to care for a character. Theo is very flawed and unlikable.
Not Parker Fadley straight-up bitchy, with humor and a small lovable side to her, but the straight-up horrible person with few redeeming qualities.
Theo cheats, lies, pushes everyone away and is self-centered.
She makes a billion and one mistakes, hurts so many people, and I did not like her.
It’s easy if there’s a villain in a story, one you can just point fingers at and hate as much as everyone else. But when the most unlikable person in the book is the one who’s telling it, how do you make it work?
In the end Theo is the one who has been hurt, the one who has fucked up so many things because other people ruined her.
It wasn’t until the last 50 pages that our narrator felt human to me. What happened to her was horrible and sad and far too real. That’s when she grew immensely and gained my sympathy, but not enough for me to like the book.
This is not a mystery: it’s a contemporary story about the struggle of one girl who is afraid to speak up. It’s about what the silence means and how it can change things.
It’s about a girl who makes poor decisions and hurts people because she herself has been hurt. It was so frustrating that I sometimes felt like throwing it out the window.
Based on the cover and title Pointe appears to be a story of ballet.
Based on the blurb, it seems like a mystery dealing with kidnapping.
In reality, the main focus lies elsewhere.
What’s next is a big spoiler, but it’s something I honestly wish I’d known starting this book, and it can be very triggering for some people.
At its core, this deals with two very heavy topics at the same time, one that you know right from the start, and one that is later revealed: eating disorders and
Spoiler
statutory rapePointe isn’t pitched as the story of a
Spoiler
rape survivor (who refused to believe she was raped. Theo she was too young to consent, but didn't know it. Side note: This made me damned concerned about the sex education in America, even though this is fiction) and someone struggling with an EDThese two themes are described rather graphically and it is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking. This author has some balls to write about it in such a convincing and detailed way, but I was personally disturbed by it rather than emotionally affected by it.
Please don’t read this if you don’t consider yourself mature enough or can be triggered by the topics I just stated. I haven’t experienced any of them, and I still felt very unsettled and shocked by the content.
It made me uncomfortable, scared, sad and most of all angry.
This wasn’t necessarily a bad book, but it was difficult to read and I think I would’ve enjoyed it more if I hadn’t been so surprised by the actual plot.
It messed with my head, because we have a TSTL heroine throughout most of the book, whose reasons I completely understood at the end. I can't tell if Theo's character was purposely written as unlikable so you'd be forced to sympathize with her despite her flaws. I just don't know.
ell_jay_em7's review against another edition
5.0
Oh, I loved this. It's rare that I get teary while reading but I did at the end. Brandy Colbert captures the agony of teenage secrets and trauma so pointedly (lol) it made my heart ache. I'm glad this book exists.
taylorlechat's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. I wish they would have focused more on the trial and her eating habits, rather than her boytoy, but I liked the realistic yet optimistic ending.
hayleybeale's review against another edition
4.0
A complex, nuanced novel about a young Black woman whose life spins out of control when her best friend, who was abducted four years earlier, comes back. See my full review here.
sdb27's review against another edition
5.0
Wow. Heartbreaking but beautifully told. Everything that The Ice Cream Girls should have been.
natidelgadov's review against another edition
2.0
Este fue un libro que definitivamente no disfruté leer, toca diversos temas como la pedofilia, la infidelidad y trastornos alimenticios, los cuales me impactaron tanto que leía con mucha angustia. Lo que más rescato de este libro es el final, el cambio de Theo, los padres de la protagonista y el apoyo de su entrenadora.
A pesar de que sufrí mientras leía este libro, me parece que está muy bien escrito y que los temas que toca son importantes de leer.
A pesar de que sufrí mientras leía este libro, me parece que está muy bien escrito y que los temas que toca son importantes de leer.
timeliss's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the plot line to this story. I don't think I've ever read a book where the boy gets kidnapped, instead of a little girl. I also loved how Theo's story intertwined with Donovan's and although it was sad how Chris treated her so early on in her life, it really did provide a crucial account in getting justice for her best friend. Theo wasn't a relatable character, obviously, but it was so easy to empathize with her. The two people she valued most in life disappeared at once, leaving her feeling abandoned. The boy that would have been the perfect remedy for the hurt she received from the abuse from Chris turned his back on her when she needed him most. My heart hurts for her, knowing that she just wanted someone to love her and to be there for her. What Christopher exposed her to really messed her up, which sheds light on how harmful child abuse is. It never leaves you once you've gone through it; it grows with you until it eventually becomes a part of you, negatively affecting how well you live your life.
I enjoyed it, and finished it in about 3 hours. It moves at a good pace until the end where it sort of just skips around, but I found myself unable to put it down. However, this is one of those books that just ends. All of these crazy events happen, then they are over, and then the book is finished. Not many explanations, no glimpses into Theo's future, no explanation on whether Theo and Donovan become friends again, or if she signs up for those ballet schools, or how long she has to stay in that mental hospital, or if she ever gets better, or how her friends feel, or if Donovan is doing better... the list goes on. The book just finishes and you're left to fill in the blanks. I don't always like that, because I'm one of those people who will assume always the worst will happen. All in all, I liked this book but I wish it had more substance. It seemed like it was missing something to me. Maybe if Theo did get to speak to Donovan or something, it just seems a little empty. I also wish we got to hear something from Donovan. I was hoping to hear his story but we never really get it. All we know is that he was kidnapped by Chris for sex, and somehow he's home now, 4 years later. We have no idea how he felt in that time, what happened to him, how he was able to make his way back home. Once again, forcing the reader to make assumptions. I'm glad I read it though, and it felt so real that I feel like I can just Google what happened to Donovan haha.
I enjoyed it, and finished it in about 3 hours. It moves at a good pace until the end where it sort of just skips around, but I found myself unable to put it down. However, this is one of those books that just ends. All of these crazy events happen, then they are over, and then the book is finished. Not many explanations, no glimpses into Theo's future, no explanation on whether Theo and Donovan become friends again, or if she signs up for those ballet schools, or how long she has to stay in that mental hospital, or if she ever gets better, or how her friends feel, or if Donovan is doing better... the list goes on. The book just finishes and you're left to fill in the blanks. I don't always like that, because I'm one of those people who will assume always the worst will happen. All in all, I liked this book but I wish it had more substance. It seemed like it was missing something to me. Maybe if Theo did get to speak to Donovan or something, it just seems a little empty. I also wish we got to hear something from Donovan. I was hoping to hear his story but we never really get it. All we know is that he was kidnapped by Chris for sex, and somehow he's home now, 4 years later. We have no idea how he felt in that time, what happened to him, how he was able to make his way back home. Once again, forcing the reader to make assumptions. I'm glad I read it though, and it felt so real that I feel like I can just Google what happened to Donovan haha.
indecisivesailorscout's review against another edition
4.0
Hoo boy, this was very sad and difficult to read. Beautiful writing, though. RTC!
doublearegee's review against another edition
3.0
At first I thought oooh, a ballet book. Between the anorexia and the child abduction and all that yeah, it was hard to read.
maiamissa's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. I read through it in a few hours, and it kept my interest most of the time. I liked the relationships in the book, but at times, it was a bit to much romance. I would have liked more conversation with Donovan, and more interaction and knowledge of him, but I guess you can't have all... Anyway, it was an interesting read, that I enjoyed very much ☺️