Scan barcode
sav_j'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Mental illness, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content
ktdakotareads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Child death, Domestic abuse, Blood, Bullying, Death, and Toxic relationship
beckyjzw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Child abuse, Abortion, Physical abuse, Transphobia, Violence, and Self harm
torturedreadersdept'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
5.0
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical content, Outing, Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Death, Violence, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Alcohol, Animal death, Bullying, Body horror, Cursing, Deadnaming, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Gaslighting, Murder, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
jenijenocide's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Child death, Physical abuse, Grief, Child abuse, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Death, Transphobia, and Toxic relationship
bookwormcat'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
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Deadnaming, Outing, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Bullying, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Violence
kelseyreads94'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
3.5
Graphic: Outing, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Toxic friendship, Domestic abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Medical trauma, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Hate crime
Minor: Abortion and Sexual harassment
mecmccann's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book had a clear purpose, to shed light on the lives and dangers of queer youth, and it did achieve it. I thought this aspect of the book was poignant and thorough. However, I had some difficulty really believing the love story. Asher and Lilly were only dating for three months and they fought to the point that they weren't talking for like 8 weeks. They were very much on-again-off-again, in my opinion, but they're so set that this is the love of their life. It's not, you're not talking to each other, you've known each other for a month. This is part of the reason I tend to have issues with books about/from the perspective of teenagers. I was a teenager once, and yes I thought little issues were the end of the world, so I do see that for them. However, I felt that the immaturity of the characters and of their relationship took away from the overall impact that this story could have had.
I could also argue that the immaturity of their relationship reflects that of high school relationships, which this was, and maybe this was some people's high school experience, we all think we're in love after the first date when you're 15. But these kids were 18, seniors, almost done with high school and moving on to college where they would learn quickly how to be adults, and at that point, I think the infatuation of instalove dies down. But this was very much instalove, and that is what takes away from the purpose.
I also felt like it was written to embody tumblr circa 2014, at the height of every teenage girl's John Green era. It really threw me back to when I was 16, on tumblr, reading every book John Green wrote and Supernatural fanfic. With this, there were some similes that just didn't make sense. At least John Green's brother is a scientist, so he wasn't over here making similes about exploding inert compounds. I feel like it's not hard to do a google search to make sure you're actually saying what you want to say. Don't get your information from a tumblr poem.
So I guess TLDR; This book had a clearcut purpose that it achieved well, but it should have been written in 2014, and read and raved about by the John Green girlies on tumblr.
Graphic: Bullying, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, and Violence
Moderate: Blood
lvosler21'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
5.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Dysphoria, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Gaslighting, Self harm, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Grief, Mental illness, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Outing, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Cursing, Death, Deadnaming, Child death, Bullying, Body shaming, Blood, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
jrow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Homophobia, Outing, Suicide attempt, Violence, Transphobia, Bullying, Deadnaming, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Blood