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cheye13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Beautiful writing, engaging and deep characters. Would not be opposed to a reread – maybe bc I read it in audio, some details went over my head that would've made the ending land better.
Graphic: Death and Death of parent
Moderate: Abandonment, Cancer, Cursing, and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, and Vomit
tinana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Homophobia and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual content, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship
areadingstan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
My favourite character was definitely Mitsuko, she was a very motherly mother, and well-written.
I got through Benson’s passages very quickly because of the short chapters but I liked how Mike’s chapters were structured differently, it really made me feel as if I was hearing it from their separate perspectives and it allowed me to see things from both sides.
I’ll definitely be reading more of Washington’s work.
Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Sexual content, and Violence
readsonthedownlo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content
gabbygarcia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Abandonment, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Racial slurs, and Racism
commanderceleste's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, and Chronic illness
Minor: Racism, Xenophobia, Sexual content, Police brutality, and Drug use
logan_groen's review against another edition
- 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? N/A
4.75
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Death of parent, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Alcoholism and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Fatphobia, and Racism
lena_and_her_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, Cursing, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Violence and Vomit
236girls's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Alcoholism and Sexual content
jazzeeazz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book blew me away without it being challenging to read. One warning is that dialogue is not in quotations, which bothered some people apparently, but it didn’t affect my enjoyment at all.
Fully recommend, it’s amazing.
The only points off were for the ambiguous ending. I love a good ambiguous ending, but it felt very out of place in this book.
But, with this ambiguous ending, I get to choose to believe what happens.
I’M NOT JUST BEING A ROMANTIC, I THINK IT FITS THE STORY.
Ben is so obviously the main character; the book starts and ends with his perspective, which basically forces the readers to side with Ben.
Ben’s journey/development is also so fluid, whereas Mike’s is contained in his perspective. That’s why we go back to Ben, but not Mike.
I FUCKING LOVE MITSUKO SO MUCH.
Her relationship with Ben was so perfect, and HER LESSON UGH.
Mitsuko reaching Ben that he can take charge of the things he wants, which he never did because things were always happening TO him. But he continuously ALLOWED things to happen to him, where he never said what he wanted (with Mike, with his family).
And then he stood up in front of his family.
Okay that was a lot of building evidence is this a literary analysis?
But THERFORE, the path that Ben stepped on once he did that would be one where he just tells Mike what he wants (FOR ONCE!).
That section was a lot of rambling
A raw, relatable, and ceiling-breaking portrayal of an adult mlm relationship, as well as those relationships we have with our parents.
LOVE.
Moderate: Sexual content