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Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'
How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
49 reviews
technicallyaly's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.5
I loved almost everything about this book.
Moon Fuentez is an incredibly charming protagonist. I love how she loves, and how she sees the world, and how she feels pain and anger and forgiveness. She feels so real to me; she has a special place in my heart.
In turn, I also adore Santiago — a boy reeling from an accident, surrounded by influencers and models who thinks Moon is the most beautiful women in any room. I also just love a boy who has passions, bonus points that that passion ends up being cooking. Gold stars all around, solid character design.
The progression of their relationship was great, from butting heads and personal jabs, to grudging coworkers, to reluctant friends, to something so genuine and touching. It felt organic and it's what made me fall in love with this book.
There are some things I take issue with; personally, I am not a fan of the ~third act misunderstanding/breakup~, and this was no different. Santiago and Moon had developed their relationship so much up until that point, and I *know* Santiago was dealing with this own insecurities that we weren't always privy to thanks to Moon's POV, but the whole Moon following Andro online thing felt so trivial, especially to have such a huge relationship ending fight over. It felt like the stakes were thrown off, and I found it a little harder to believe their ending.
Moon's resolution with her sister Star also felt a little flat to me, but also it felt right. In Moon's shoes, I wouldn't be so graceful, but her reactions felt very in line with who her character was growing to be. It made sense in the world, even if I disagreed with how it was handled.
Complicated feelings aside, I still loved this read. The language was beautiful and poetic (without sounding pretentious), and even though I have minor issues with the ending, the lead in / build up is so great, it eclipses everything. My feelings towards this book are overwhelmingly positive. 4.5/5 stars.
Moon Fuentez is an incredibly charming protagonist. I love how she loves, and how she sees the world, and how she feels pain and anger and forgiveness. She feels so real to me; she has a special place in my heart.
In turn, I also adore Santiago —
The progression of their relationship was great, from butting heads and personal jabs, to grudging coworkers, to reluctant friends, to something so genuine and touching. It felt organic and it's what made me fall in love with this book.
There are some things I take issue with;
Moon's resolution with her sister Star also felt a little flat to me, but also it felt right. In Moon's shoes, I wouldn't be so graceful, but her reactions felt very in line with who her character was growing to be. It made sense in the world, even if I disagreed with how it was handled.
Complicated feelings aside, I still loved this read. The language was beautiful and poetic (without sounding pretentious), and even though I have minor issues with the ending, the lead in / build up is so great, it eclipses everything. My feelings towards this book are overwhelmingly positive. 4.5/5 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Bullying, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, Suicide, and Grief
Minor: Misogyny
kirasofia's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tonally kinda weird, but it made me want to fall in love with living, so props for that
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Body shaming
panickat123's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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 adored this book. Plus size character who overcomes her own insecurities and learns to stand up for herself while finding love? Sign me the hell up. Cherry on top that she’s Mexican too. Just adore. Some very heavy topics in this also so please read triggers if you want to know.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, Death of parent, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Suicide, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Body shaming, and Grief
Minor: Toxic friendship and Racism
theromanticace's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Suicide
Minor: Outing, Sexual content, Racism, and Medical trauma
literarylocd's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
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
5.0
IF I COULD GIVE IT A MILLION STARS I WOULD
This book awakened something in me I never realised was dormant. It’s as if a part of my inner is now alive, whole, breathing and craving sustenance.
This book awakened something in me I never realised was dormant. It’s as if a part of my inner is now alive, whole, breathing and craving sustenance.
Gilliand explores the very concept of identity through the unticking of both religion and divination. Regardless of where you fall on the spirituality spectrum, one thing is for certain, you will fall in love with the universe. It may be through something small, like seeing a rainbow on a gloomy day. Perhaps it’ll be grander, your father waking up from his coma after 6 months making you believe in God and miracles once more. Maybe you fell in love with the universe as a child, and it shaped your very existence. Or, maybe you’ll live many years without finding your way. Moon Fuentez yearned for a higher understanding, of why her father left, why her mother couldn’t love her, why she was the ugly duckling in a sea of beautiful white swans. This is a book young girls need to read. This is a book that will challenge your idea of what it truly means to be you. It may take something out of you, but what it leaves in its place is magical. Its flung open, unbounded. Scary and dark and new, but so worth it.
It took something from me. Something I don’t ever want back.
(Also, prose that reads like poetry)
full review: https://medium.com/@isareadssalot/have-you-ever-seen-a-prettier-moon-9fe2ce544eba
full review: https://medium.com/@isareadssalot/have-you-ever-seen-a-prettier-moon-9fe2ce544eba
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Death of parent
joreliz12's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.5
I will read anything Raquel Vazquez Gilliland writes because it’s always so lyrical, emotional, and just beautiful. This book somehow perfectly combines a sweet, funny romance with an emotional story about the main character recognizing the abuse she’s faced in her life and learning to love herself. Such a good story, would highly recommend, but definitely check the content warnings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Fatphobia and Suicide
elliehoney's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
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? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent and Emotional abuse
legalplanner's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
Overall, this was a phenomenal read, Somehow I managed to push through this in a day and cried, laughed, felt my heart break for Moon, and cheered her on throughout the novel.
Moon Fuentez is a nobody in the social media world unlike her twin sister Star who wants nothing more than to be the top influencer on the summer tour. Moon has accepted her fate as the summer "merch girl" and knows it will be all bad. Bring in grumpy, snippy, sometimes combative, attractive Santiago Phillips to change Moon's mind.
About Moon:We met moon as a hidden in the shadows sister and daughter with not a lot clearly laid out about her family other than she's the black sheep. Even though she is the black sheep, Moon is the singular person in her family that will speak the truth about things without consequences. She doesn't live her life for others. She lives it for her and her alone. That's power.... in a way.
I absolutely loved how we get to know Moon. She's real, she's not some faked out character who is "perfect". Moon is not a size 2, she's not a virgin, she wants her own life away from her sister, and she wants to be loved for her.
The dynamic in the family is evident from the very beginning of the book. It is clearly outlined that Moon is the outcast and Star is the favorite. Yet, we get to know Moon in ways that show she's been cast in the roll as outcast for so long that even she has started to believe it. She goes above and beyond for her sister's career by taking and editing her photographs, yet she is never given a choice or a compliment about the hard work she's done.
In some moments of the story, it was painful to hear the degrading comments about Moon because she is not a virgin and not a size 2. Yes because people should not be shamed for those things but also its because its coming from a person who should love her unconditionally, but doesn't.
The twists and turns and her friendship with Santiago is what kept me turning page after page. While you think this might be a Teen YA RomCom, it is don't worry, it doesn't feel like an overplayed RomCom. We learn more about Santiago and Moon as disinterested co-workers, then friends, and then possibly more. Yet we see their insecurities and we see them work through how you're supposed to work through those in a proper manner. We also see the downfall of Star and Moon's relationship and how being put on a pedestal can create immature jealousy that does more damage than realized.
Moon Fuentez is a nobody in the social media world unlike her twin sister Star who wants nothing more than to be the top influencer on the summer tour. Moon has accepted her fate as the summer "merch girl" and knows it will be all bad. Bring in grumpy, snippy, sometimes combative, attractive Santiago Phillips to change Moon's mind.
About Moon:
I absolutely loved how we get to know Moon. She's real, she's not some faked out character who is "perfect". Moon is not a size 2, she's not a virgin, she wants her own life away from her sister, and she wants to be loved for her.
The dynamic in the family is evident from the very beginning of the book. It is clearly outlined that Moon is the outcast and Star is the favorite. Yet, we get to know Moon in ways that show she's been cast in the roll as outcast for so long that even she has started to believe it. She goes above and beyond for her sister's career by taking and editing her photographs, yet she is never given a choice or a compliment about the hard work she's done.
In some moments of the story, it was painful to hear the degrading comments about Moon because she is not a virgin and not a size 2. Yes because people should not be shamed for those things but also its because its coming from a person who should love her unconditionally, but doesn't.
The twists and turns and her friendship with Santiago is what kept me turning page after page. While you think this might be a Teen YA RomCom, it is don't worry, it doesn't feel like an overplayed RomCom. We learn more about Santiago and Moon as disinterested co-workers, then friends, and then possibly more. Yet we see their insecurities and we see them work through how you're supposed to work through those in a proper manner. We also see the downfall of Star and Moon's relationship and how being put on a pedestal can create immature jealousy that does more damage than realized.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Racism and Suicide
Minor: Infidelity, Car accident, and Panic attacks/disorders
imstephtacular's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Sexual content, Mental illness, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Grief, Racism, Sexism, Death of parent, and Physical abuse
Minor: Suicide, Cursing, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Car accident
akchanda's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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 stumbled upon this book and am so, so glad I did. I couldn’t put it down! The descriptions of nature are beautiful, and I loved Moon’s character and was constantly rooting for her. The plot is engaging and I personally love hate-to-love romance tropes so that worked really well for me. I also really enjoyed the magical realism elements of this book. Definitely recommend!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Suicide