Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult, Jennifer Finney Boylan

136 reviews

heatheronthego's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Grief, and Outing

Moderate: Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Deadnaming

ltulisiak's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative mysterious sad tense 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 death, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Deadnaming and Sexism

kebbe7's review against another edition

emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

rsbrown19's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective sad tense 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? No

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Abortion

sunnydale's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious tense slow-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

3.5

the first jodi picoult book i've read (albeit only half-written by her). her style is easy to glide through, and the characters are authentic and compelling. the plot involves some heavy subject matter that could be triggering, so i recommend checking content warnings. the ending was a little rushed and felt too satisfying—i think a lack of resolution actually would have fit the themes better. 

the audiobook has two voice actors, and they both do an excellent job. i also like the inclusion of recipes at the end!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Outing, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Suicide attempts:

Lily and Asher both cut their wrists to attempt suicide.

Transphobia: Two scenes described in detail.

Both are from Lily's perspective. In the chapter "Lily 6," Lily is publicly humiliated at a school dance, then attacked in the parking lot. This event is referenced in later chapters. In "Lily 10," Lily is bullied at an all-boys school, then is physically abused by her father.

Domestic abuse: Many of Olivia's chapters include flashbacks to moments when she was abused by her ex-husband. Some of Lily's chapters also include descriptions of physical or emotional abuse. Domestic violence is a significant part of this book.

joey1914's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Outing, Abandonment, and Dysphoria

bella_cavicchi's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• 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? It's complicated

4.0

Shockingly, this is only the second Jodi Picoult novel I've read! But I understand her broad appeal: she writes compelling and relevant narratives and here, with co-author Jenny Finley Boylan, has crafted a rich, interesting set of characters. It dragged somewhat in the middle for me (which may just be a symptom of reading it over the course of a month!), but stick it out for a powerful courtroom ending. Good stuff.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Outing, Abandonment, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Deadnaming, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

nerdy_book_mom's review against another edition

emotional informative sad tense 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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Transphobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Outing, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

emily_koopmann's review against another edition

slow-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism and Alcohol

logikitty's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

• 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? N/A

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Outing, Gaslighting, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Misogyny and Sexual content