Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The People We Keep by Allison Larkin

22 reviews

redefiningrachel's review

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Addiction, Blood, Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Terminal illness

Minor: Body shaming, Miscarriage, and Fatphobia

ems_rxlibrary's review

emotional slow-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Sexual assault and Cursing

Minor: Sexual content

kelly_e's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

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

2.75

Title: The People We Keep
Author: Allison Larkin
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: August 3, 2021

T H R E E • W O R D S

Slow • Nostalgic • Repetitive

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Abandoned by her mother as a child, April is living in a run-down motorhome her father won as part of a bet, and picking up shifts at the local diner. Her father who is rarely ever home, prefers to spend time with his girlfriend and her child. To make matters worse, April's failing at school and barely scraping by. Sick of it all and with dreams of pursuing her music, she steals a car and leaves Little River behind.

💭 T H O U G H T S

After seeing several glowing reviews and reading the synopsis, I was convinced The People We Keep would be a book I'd love. Unfortunately, I was wrong (it happens).

What I like:
• part one. It started out so strong. I was intrigued. I was engaged. I wanted to keep reading.
• the singer/songwriter aspect. I wish there'd have been a bigger focus on this element.
• the secondary characters. April meets some wonderful and endearing people along the way.
• the audio narration. It's Julia Whelan. Enough said.

What I didn't like:
• part two on. After starting with so much potential, it really lost it's footing as I progressed and my attention waned considerably.
• the pacing. It felt longer than it actually was. And yet, the entire story spans only four years of April's life, and I wanted felt as though it should have been longer.
• the repetitive nature of April's behaviour. The same thing happens over and over again. April's behaviour felt like a broken record, making the narrative highly predictable and giving it YA vibes. Honestly, it didn't feel like she grew all that much from start to finish.
• the sexual encounters. The story didn't need this and would likely have been better without.
• the redemptive power of motherhood. It all just felt so unrealistic and cliché.
• entering a relationship under false pretenses. Just. A. Hard. No.

In summary, The People We Keep had so many of the elements I love in a character-driven story, but it just ended up not working. I definitely understand why this book is so beloved by many readers, it was just not the right fit for me.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of the found family trope
• readers who like character-driven narratives

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"I wonder if maybe all you do is meet people and lose them and your smile fades the further you go because you have to carry the space they leave. Maybe it just all turns into old pictures on a bookshelf, engraved rings, memories of sticking stars to a ceiling, and maybe the space gets bigger and heavier every year."

"I want to believe there will still be newness in the world for me. That it's not all faded and dusty." 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Drug use, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Child abuse

child neglect

theonlybaillie's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Child abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Death of parent, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Cursing, Dementia, Injury/Injury detail, and Rape

gabgeh's review against another edition

sad medium-paced

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

1.5

I would not recommend this book if high-quality writing is a priority for you. A somewhat cute, sad, self-insert story with very few character motivators and very little plot development. Tolerable only because I was reading it for a book club and would be able to trash-talk it after reading it. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Death of parent, Dementia, and Drug use

ryannredinger's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Allison Larkin's The People We Keep was such a refreshing read. After reading books like Normal People or Perks of Being a Wallflower, TPWK was such a sweet book about found family and trying to find home. 

I found the characters (most of them haha) really fun and lovable, and the characters you aren’t supposed to like, you definitely don’t. The setting and overall vibes of the book are immaculate. I could really envision the setting and character which makes the story come to life for me. 

My favorite part of the book was the writing style. Larkin has some absolutely stunning lines and observations about relationships and life that put words to abstract concepts of thought of and experienced before. There were some lines or passages that stopped me in my tracks to sit and think. The writing really elevated the story, and the observations made by the main character made me relate to her on a deep level. 

I gave TPWK a 4 out of 5 stars because I think it is just such a fun, sweet story that was a truly enjoyable read. If you feel like you need a more light-hearted story about finding family and growing up on the road, I highly recommend The People We Keep. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Injury/Injury detail

lornreadsbooks's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

planreadrepeat's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

April is living in a small town in upstate New York. Neglected by her father, left by her mother, and mostly expected to raise herself in a junk motorhome, she leaves to make her own way in the world. While the book touches on a lot of issues, the journey of a teen to young adult making her own family of friends is a central theme.  She meets various people, has relationships with some that are fleeting and a few that are deep and moving.  My favorite quote is  “If someone changes so much that they're barely the same person, who are you even missing?" when she runs into an old friend from home. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual content

Minor: Mental illness

lindseyrinehart's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Child abuse

kelseyrae15's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Sexual assault, Abandonment, and Pregnancy