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daniofthewood's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death of parent, Drug use, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Chronic illness, Cursing, Sexual content, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Pregnancy
Minor: Racism, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Police brutality, Sexism, Body shaming, Classism, Pedophilia, Fatphobia, and Sexual harassment
celery's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Violence, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Lesbophobia, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical trauma, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Car accident, Excrement, Sexual assault, Vomit, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Medical content, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
its_van_vulpen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Body shaming, Drug use, Car accident, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pregnancy, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Miscarriage
Minor: Abortion
maybeimali's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Abandonment, Drug use, Alcohol, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexism, Child abuse, and Violence
violetbentbackwards1036's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Alcohol, Grief, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Violence, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Abandonment, Addiction, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, and Cursing
hazelreads1'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? No
4.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Grief, Child abuse, Death, and Alcohol
kelly_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 4.25
Pub Date: May 27, 2021
T H R E E • W O R D S
Addictive • Evocative • Entertaining
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Malibu: August 1983. It's the day of Nina Riva's annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over--especially as the offspring of the legendary singer Mick Riva.
The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself, who never wanted to be the center of attention, and who has also just been very publicly abandoned by her pro tennis player husband. Oh, and maybe Hud--because it is long past time for him to confess something to the brother from whom he's been inseparable since birth. Jay, on the other hand, is counting the minutes until nightfall, when the girl he can't stop thinking about promised she'll be there. And Kit has a couple secrets of her own--including a guest she invited without consulting anyone.
By midnight the party will be completely out of control. By morning, the Riva mansion will have gone up in flames. But before that first spark in the early hours before dawn, the alcohol will flow, the music will play, and the loves and secrets that shaped this family's generations will all come rising to the surface.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I deliberately chose to take Malibu Rising on my recent trip to Los Angeles and I couldn't have picked a better time to pick it up. Being in the California sun, with the gentle ocean breeze, and being close to some of the places talked about throughout the book really offered something extra to my reading experience.
The dysfunctional family dynamics of the Riva siblings felt believable, their relationships seemed genuine, and their flawed character development was fantastic. Nina was my favourite character - her arc is the one I gravitated towards most. Her selfless nature felt entirely relatable and my heart just went out to her.
Even though the entirety of this book takes places over the span on 24 hours, the bulk of it takes place in Malibu during the 1980s. While the party timeline could feel a bit distracting, I understand it was necessary and feel as though TJR has crafted them together perfectly. The main issue I had was with the amount of characters I needed to keep track of at the party. I didn't really care, and wanted more depth about the Rivas. The setting itself added an element of glitz and glamour, and the TJR describes the area with ease.
Overall, Malibu Rising is another enjoyable story, mixing historical fiction with family drama, that I would highly recommend. The audio narration by Julia Whalen is fabulous. And what I love so much about TJR's stories is how each one is so unique. While this one wasn't my absolute favourite, I still cannot wait to keep exploring her backlist and seeing what she writes next.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• anyone looking for beachy summertime vibes
• TJR devotees
• historical fiction readers looking for something different
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Our family histories are simply stories. They are myths we create about the people who came before us, in order to make sense of ourselves."
"She had to choose what, of the things she inherited from the people who came before her, she wanted to bring forward. And what, of the past, she wanted to leave behind."
"She knew that she could not sustain her life fueled only by the memories of those she once loved. Loss would not propel her forward. She had to go out and live. She had to find new people."
Graphic: Drug use, Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Alcohol
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Police brutality, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Violence, and Sexism
Minor: Car accident, Miscarriage, Gaslighting, Abortion, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Cursing, Blood, Infidelity, and Suicide
theaa_reads's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
spice: /
like all of taylor jenkins reids books this book was kind of sad but i learned so many things
i also really liked the concept of this book (that the whole book was about one day)
it was kind of hard to read and to get into but i still really liked the book!
if you are looking for a sad, challenging and inspiring summer read, this book is perfect for you
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Suicide, and Drug use
Moderate: Sexism, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
ash122's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
Graphic: Infidelity, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Death of parent
hayleythegoose's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexism, Child abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Drug abuse, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Cursing, Addiction, Rape, and Sexual content
Minor: Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, and Car accident