Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Ordinary Human Failings by Megan Nolan

20 reviews

kirstym25's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Abortion, Death of parent, and Death

grunbean's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

5.0

I read this with a book club, and this is a firm first five star of the year. It is deeply emotional. I have never read the ‘ordinary human failings’ of life like this. 

Though centred around a tragic event, this story isn’t focused on this and the answer to it. It explores the stories of the family members and what made them who they are. I wanted to cry when I read the paths the characters were taking. I think it’s very much a book to be read than explained. I will be looking into the others books from this author.

My final thought is a sincere f@!# you to Tom Hargreaves.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Classism, Alcoholism, and Child death

terrimisu's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Ordinary Human Failings follows the aftermath in which a ten-year-old little girl is killed and suspicions point towards little Lucy Green. Amidst the investigation led by Tom Hargreaves and from the investigation, we slowly uncover the generational traumas that have occurred amongst the Green family.

I can already say this is one of my top reads of 2024. I enjoyed every second reading Ordinary Human Failings and was more than just impressed by how far this surpassed Megan Nolan’s Acts of Desperation. I loved Acts of Desperation but I think I can confidently say that I love Ordinary Human Failings even more for a myriad of reasons. I truly appreciated the frequent POV and time jumps, the gruesomeness, and the authenticity in which individual faults can lead up to such a catastrophic set of events. I got to learn more about each Green member and how their life took a turn for the worst, which ultimately changed the trajectory of their lives in their own way (whether it be a minor or major fault). It was quite fascinating how the life of Lucy Green was greatly affected prior to her own conception merely from the ordinary human failings of her family. Somehow all very separate traumatic experiences meet one another and manifest into something greater than it is which gravely leads to Lucy’s own ordinary human failing; an unthinkable act that was least expected. Ordinary Human Failings is something everyone needs to experience once in life and it's a beautiful piece of work that must be acknowledged for what it is; a masterpiece. 

I want to thank Little Brown for allowing me the opportunity to read a galley of Ordinary Human Failing (and Megan Nolan for creating a beautiful novel)! I am so so excited to see what's in the future of Megan Nolan’s literature. Everyone go pick up Ordinary Human Failings in your nearest bookstores ASAP, this is a novel everyone must read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, Infidelity, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Alcoholism

readingwithgoose's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, and Child death

Moderate: Death of parent and Infidelity

lagaialettrice's review

emotional fast-paced

• 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Child death, Pregnancy, and Alcoholism

lianne_rooney's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Pregnancy, Child death, Death of parent, and Infidelity

linguaphile412's review

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Child death

Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, and Pregnancy

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Grief, Death, Child abuse, and Death of parent

bubblegum_or_books's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol

Moderate: Alcoholism, Abortion, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Terminal illness, Murder, Death, and Child death

Minor: Cancer, Grief, and Infidelity

lauradvb's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Pregnancy and Child death

reads_eats_explores's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Set in the 1990s, ambitious reporter Tom Hargreaves stumbles across a scoop: a dead child on a London estate. At the centre of the suspicions are one reclusive family of Irish immigrants; others on the estate call them ‘degenerates’, ‘bad apples’. But are they even to blame, or is this a modern day witch hunt?

Fiercely ambitious Tom is determined to get to the bottom of the events, but he has a brisk disregard for the ‘peasants,’ i.e. anyone, not a celebrity or journalist; he believes that nothing should get in the way of a good story, particularly none of the ‘ordinary human failings’.

Tom convinces the newspaper to put the family up in a hotel with all expenses paid. In the conversations that follow, the family are forced to confront the secrets, prejudices and silences that have trapped them for generations.

Told in a stream-of-consciousness style from various characters' points of view, this adds intimacy and depth to the narrative that would otherwise be difficult to achieve so well here. The author's exploration of love, desire, and mental health is poignant and beautifully done. 

Nolan’s characters are tangible and diverse in their physicality and emotion. There is a grittily true sense of the familial ties of the Green family; Nolan’s observation of their inner and outer emotional lives and the predispositions to why they act as they do are spot on.

Ultimately this is a stunning portrait of what it is to struggle in the face of incomprehensible circumstances, of repression, and its resulting damage.

I expected this book to be more like ‘Acts’ a "messy woman" book which I adored, but this is much more of a thriller/mystery. And I loved it; utterly compelling reading. 4.5 ⭐

Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Classism, Cursing, Dysphoria, Medical content, Misogyny, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Eating disorder, Murder, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Pregnancy, Self harm, Toxic friendship, and Addiction