Reviews with content warning for Grief - Solitaire

Well written, and some genuinely funny and sweet moments. While the characters came to life decently, they ended up feeling too much like teenage tropes to me, particularly Tori.

I'm not sure I would suggest that someone going through depression/suicidal tendencies read this book because Tori has shockingly few resources and hardly anyone looking out for her, which is not exactly realistic, nor would it be encouraging to someone in a dark place.

I also wouldn't recommend it to someone currently successfully managing their depression or who had never experienced it. It paints a bleak picture of the common stereotypes of both teenagers and people with depression, where characters' internal processes vacillate between selfishness, sheer nothingness, and melodrama. I do not enjoy stories that reinforce stereotypes.

I wish this book had been more about Tori and Charlie and how they figured things out together. There were some moments of this, and those moments represented most of the high points of the story.

I could also really have done without the Solitaire pranks and blog, which were quite over-the-top and transparent, and served no purpose in the plot or character development. Also, though the book is advertised as Michael and Tori figuring out the Solitaire mystery together, this particular aspect of their partnership hardly comes up except in the last few chapters.

There's character overlap with Heartstoppers, but Tori (thankfully) gets retconned in that series to be a much more well-rounded, believable, and relatable version of what's in this book. This book did not add anything I needed or wanted to the Heartstoppers universe, which deals with mental health challenges and coming of age far more realistically and touchingly than Solitaire.

Content Warnings

sleepywhippetbookclub's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

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emfrancess's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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scoutty's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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nikkicheyenne's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.25

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this_is_lee's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book was so intense. I found it to be extremely insightful and beautiful. Alice has a way of writing that is easy to follow and covers such deep and complex topics. This book was rich with existential thoughts, creative character building, and interesting plot.
It’s so insane to be that this was the first book Oseman wote!

Content Warnings

muukhom's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad medium-paced

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

I LOVE THIS BOOK i started listening to the audiobook (because I’d just finished heartstopper series and craved more content) and I ended up loving it so much. There’s not a single moment I’m bored! It just keep me interested all the way through! Tori is such a relatable character like normal teenagers especially during the Tumblr era. Personally, I relate to Micheal more but I absolutely adore both of them!

Tori and Micheal’s relationship is so adorable and it makes me feel so happy to see them both finally find someone who can love them! The characters’s mental health is also very sad but it was portrayed really well in the book!

In conclusion, I’d definitely reread/re-listen to it and it’s probably one of my current fav!

Content Warnings

shushkeepitdown's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I recently got into reading the heart stopper comics and even watched the show so I thought huh I should read the rest of Alice Osmen's works. This was not what I expected. Heart stopper definitely has its triggers but this was quite not what I expected. I initially didn't like Tori, she felt like an edgy teen who just wanted to hate the world with no other reason than everyone sucks but slowly it felt like looking at a mirror for when I was just her age. Cynical and hateful for everything and then regretting everything after i lost it. This story is not a love story, it's a story about reflection and being alive even if you don't want to. I loved the characters. I hope one day I can meet someone just like Micheal who is willing to be angry with me when I'm an asshole but still willing to pick up my calls and help me when I need them. Overall a story I would definitely suggest you read. A good read, can be a bit confusing sometimes. Also it has characters from other books so it might be a little confusing if you don't read in order but I didn't have that as an issue.

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