Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Malibu Rising

Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

317 reviews

maisiepamela's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I really liked this book. I found myself always wanting to read more which is a good sign. I loved the Riva siblings but HATED their dad. I found their story so sad but it was narrated so well and it was every insightful to me. The bond the siblings had was so cute too!The narrator described lots of people not just one and I loved the flashbacks that were there. The end was a little disappointing

but ended happy more than sad which I actually think I liked more

. There were plot twists that I didn’t see coming at all. And characters I shipped ended up together too.I loved the happy end and how fast the book went.

Content Warnings

lilifane's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Do I care about surfing? Nope (although I wouldn't have minded a few more surfing scenes tbh). Do I care about rich and famous people throwing wild parties full of sex, drugs and alcohol? Nooooo. Am I interested in reading about cheating husbands and struggles of being a parent/ raising children? Hell no!!!!
But when Taylor Jenkins Reid writes it, I will apparently still enjoy it. A lot. Her characters are some of the best fleshed out characters I've ever read. Her writing is super immersive. I swear, for 2 days I was part of this family. I was happy with them, sad with them. I laughed and cried with them. All of her characters just feel like real people and once the book is over, it's hard to comprehend that you just left a fictional group of people and need to return to the real world.
Warning, though, the subtitle of this book should be: The AUDACITY of shitty men!
I have never rolled my eyes SO much in my life. The things these men did and the way they reacted to those things and what they expected afterwords. I'm speechless. I get this is intentionally over the top... but truly, it reads pretty accurate.
The women, though: Take my heart, I adore you. Nina is an angel and she deserves the world. Nina's best friend? Marry me, please? Kit is amazing! Can we get a sequel focusing on her? That tennis player? SLAY GIRL!
Although I think the small party episodes were entertaining and great for the atmosphere, there were just too many side characters and names being thrown around. By the end of the party, I was super confused. But then again... that's probably how you feel after these kinds of parties.
And I'm a little confused about the role of the fire in the story. The marketing and how people talked about it made me believe it would play a bigger part in the plot. So my expectations were off, and I think this also contributed to me missing something in the end.

Content Warnings