Scan barcode
agbowler's review against another edition
dark
emotional
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I didn't like how the main character was depicted but the overall book was great.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Sexual content, and Drug use
Minor: Sexual harassment and Sexual assault
isabellabolanos's review against another edition
emotional
fast-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
4.0
Pretty good romance
the break up at the very end of the book could have very easily been resolved by a phone call lol. It was dramatic for no reason
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Drug abuse, Self harm, Chronic illness, and Alcoholism
Minor: Sexual assault
savvylit's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
What I liked: this book is well-written and well-paced. Eva and Audre's mother-daughter relationship is both heartwarming and fun. I truly enjoyed all of Audre's scenes in this book. Also, adult Shane and Eva's romance is steamy and sweet at the same time.
What I didn't like: the teenage romance between Eva and Shane was incredibly toxic. They were instantly codependent, despite having just met. And they were on a drug-induced bender for most of their Seven Days! That was enough to bond them for life? Also, (spoiler alert!) the way that the author portrayed self-harm was disturbing. Self-harm is basically glamorized in some of this book's flashback scenes. Ultimately, that just added more to my disbelief and discomfort with the toxic origins of this entire romance.
What I didn't like: the teenage romance between Eva and Shane was incredibly toxic. They were instantly codependent, despite having just met. And they were on a drug-induced bender for most of their Seven Days! That was enough to bond them for life? Also, (spoiler alert!) the way that the author portrayed self-harm was disturbing. Self-harm is basically glamorized in some of this book's flashback scenes. Ultimately, that just added more to my disbelief and discomfort with the toxic origins of this entire romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Drug use, Drug abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Violence, Chronic illness, Mental illness, and Alcohol
mwakisha's review against another edition
sad
fast-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
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Self harm, Gore, and Gun violence
adhyphenk's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, and Alcoholism
Minor: Sexual assault
social_eyes's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Sexual assault and Addiction
Minor: Murder
mariamsaidwhat's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
- 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? Yes
3.0
I have issues with this being labeled a second chance romance because the way Eva and Shane met was not romantic at all. It was so tumultuous, bloody, and unstable that I found myself wondering how they both became so successful in spite of it all. More time, I think, could have been spent on that because the tone shifts between the first hundred or so pages and the past and present were HUGE. Overall, I think this novel was probably a little bit too angsty and slow for me. There are people who love to live in that space, though it was rough for me to get through.
Definitely check the trigger warnings before reading if you think that’s something you’d need.
Definitely check the trigger warnings before reading if you think that’s something you’d need.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Alcohol, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Addiction, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, and Cursing
Minor: Gun violence and Death
whatmadsreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Self harm, Alcoholism, and Sexual assault
_inge's review against another edition
hopeful
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
When I picked this up I thought this would be a high literary, intense and depressing novel. When I started reading it and realised there was a lot of humour and love within its pages, I knew I’d have a good time reading it. I loved the disability rep, that this love story wasn’t cookie cutter and all perfect, yet the protagonists’ bond still felt really strong all the same.
That being said, their love not being perfect did mean I found the plot itself a bit confusing. Their past romance was a very intensive week together. It’s stated that their connection throughout this was imminent and perfect, so it was definitely believable it had such an impact, but it could’ve easily been perceived as a quick summer fling. I was so wrapped up in these characters that I didn’t really think about it as I was reading though! There’s some miscommunication at the end which could’ve clearly been avoided if people just… stayed in touch, and from the last few chapters the narrative structure really does feel like any other romance book. It felt really original and interesting at times, but still felt into romance tropes anyways. This meant I wasn’t sure if this book would put itself against other romances or if it was meant to be a criticism on them.
The writing style was infused with (black) pop culture references and brands, which got annoying quickly. People would wear Dior dresses which make them look like someone from a music video by Rihanna, people wouldn’t simply pick up their phone but their Samsung Galaxy…. I just opened this book at a random page to find examples, and I already got ‘Serena Williams fused with Wonder-Woman’ and ‘Morgan Freeman in that specific film’. It seems there’s got to be a reference to something on every single page.
Audre especially uses terminology and modern ideas about topics like race and gender in a way that felt jarring sometimes. There’s a segment where Audre sits with kids who she thinks are all ‘mentally ill’, because she thinks they’ve got disorders like OCD and ASD, and then wonders what’ll happen to these ‘psychos’ when they grow up ??? I never understood the purpose of these segments; they address actual issues, but the tone makes it seem like these segments are meant to be funny.
There’s also a lot of time shifts as well as perspective shifts, but they’re not clearly marked in any way and don’t happen within a set pattern. At certain times I was therefore unsure whether I was reading about a past event or not. When Eva calls her mum at one point I was certain this was a past event, until she discusses things which happened in the present.
A lot of these ‘issues’ I’m only considering in hindsight. I really wanted to keep reading this and didn’t want to put it down. The ending wasn’t fulfilling to me in any way, which is maybe why I’m considering other aspects of this novel now too. But I was hooked on this for a while, and for the most part I do think it did something interesting within the romance genre.
That being said, their love not being perfect did mean I found the plot itself a bit confusing. Their past romance was a very intensive week together. It’s stated that their connection throughout this was imminent and perfect, so it was definitely believable it had such an impact, but it could’ve easily been perceived as a quick summer fling. I was so wrapped up in these characters that I didn’t really think about it as I was reading though! There’s some miscommunication at the end which could’ve clearly been avoided if people just… stayed in touch, and from the last few chapters the narrative structure really does feel like any other romance book. It felt really original and interesting at times, but still felt into romance tropes anyways. This meant I wasn’t sure if this book would put itself against other romances or if it was meant to be a criticism on them.
The writing style was infused with (black) pop culture references and brands, which got annoying quickly. People would wear Dior dresses which make them look like someone from a music video by Rihanna, people wouldn’t simply pick up their phone but their Samsung Galaxy…. I just opened this book at a random page to find examples, and I already got ‘Serena Williams fused with Wonder-Woman’ and ‘Morgan Freeman in that specific film’. It seems there’s got to be a reference to something on every single page.
Audre especially uses terminology and modern ideas about topics like race and gender in a way that felt jarring sometimes. There’s a segment where Audre sits with kids who she thinks are all ‘mentally ill’, because she thinks they’ve got disorders like OCD and ASD, and then wonders what’ll happen to these ‘psychos’ when they grow up ??? I never understood the purpose of these segments; they address actual issues, but the tone makes it seem like these segments are meant to be funny.
There’s also a lot of time shifts as well as perspective shifts, but they’re not clearly marked in any way and don’t happen within a set pattern. At certain times I was therefore unsure whether I was reading about a past event or not. When Eva calls her mum at one point I was certain this was a past event, until she discusses things which happened in the present.
A lot of these ‘issues’ I’m only considering in hindsight. I really wanted to keep reading this and didn’t want to put it down. The ending wasn’t fulfilling to me in any way, which is maybe why I’m considering other aspects of this novel now too. But I was hooked on this for a while, and for the most part I do think it did something interesting within the romance genre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Self harm, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Drug use, Sexual content, Child death, and Addiction
alexisgarcia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
ngl there are a bunch of parts of this book that i think were unsuccessful or just not great/necessary. however, i fell in absolute love with the characters and their stories. i would do anything for them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Murder, Rape, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Racism, Sexual assault, and Mental illness