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dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
This book had so much emotional depth. While suicide is a main theme initially, the story transforms into an experience of radical self-acceptance and redemption as the characters learn how to navigate living authentically, even if it costs them everything they thought they ever wanted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Death of parent
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Suicide attempt
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Drug use, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-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
Phoebe is miserable. She is newly divorced after her professor husband left her for their colleague. Her cat just died. She is very depressed and tired of her life, so she makes a plan. Phoebe wants to splurge on herself for one last night, planning to overdose at the end of it. She books an expensive hotel in the nicest suite, but when she arrives, she gets thrown into the chaos of a couple's wedding week. Before she even makes it to her room, Phoebe meets the bride and lays out her plan. Soon, she finds herself included in the wedding activities for the entire week, with her overdose plan thrown out the window.
This book and Phoebe as a character are so relatable. She is brutally honest about her mental health, how unsatisfied she is with life, and how she communicates with the wedding people. She gets thrown into an unplanned situation and is able to find the joy of being alive again. Such a great message for readers.
This book and Phoebe as a character are so relatable. She is brutally honest about her mental health, how unsatisfied she is with life, and how she communicates with the wedding people. She gets thrown into an unplanned situation and is able to find the joy of being alive again. Such a great message for readers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Adored this book. The train-of-thought style writing elevated the story for me. Writing a sequel would be so unnecessary, but I would 100% enjoy spending more time with these characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An easy, fast read. A lot of quirky characters, which was fun. My major issue with the book is that it makes light of and there is a lot of joking about suicide, without really addressing the seriousness of mental health issues and suicidal thoughts. I am also very tired of suicidal thoughts being so easily fixed in contemporary literature. I have personal experience that makes it hard for me to read books that address suicide without taking it seriously or writing about it it in a realistic manner. That is likely unfair to the author, since this is a work of fiction, but I am who I am. Overall, I would recommend the book, with the caveat that it doesn’t take mental health issues and suicide as seriously as some might like.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death of parent
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I have a mixed bag of feelings for this book. There are some parts which I loved, some parts which I hated and some parts which made me want to stop reading the book altogether. Apart from the typos (and there are a couple of them) and the utterly impossible thing of changing one’s perspective of life in a week, there are several reasons where the book is lacking. For one, it tries so hard to be life changing and a missing puzzle piece that the readers missed even though it was right before their eyes!
The first half simply drags on and on. I understand it’s about setting the foundation, the base of the story, the characters and the world where all of it is taking place, but I was bored and under-stimulated. It felt like I was reading a badly written fanfic by a emo teenager who doesn’t have any idea of what the world / reality is. The second half was slightly better. I enjoyed it.
If I read the word “pandemic” again, I’m going to be furious. This book didn’t delve deeper but wanted the benefit of the depth and impact of the pandemic. It was in a puddle and claimed to be a swimmer.
The first half simply drags on and on. I understand it’s about setting the foundation, the base of the story, the characters and the world where all of it is taking place, but I was bored and under-stimulated. It felt like I was reading a badly written fanfic by a emo teenager who doesn’t have any idea of what the world / reality is. The second half was slightly better. I enjoyed it.
If I read the word “pandemic” again, I’m going to be furious. This book didn’t delve deeper but wanted the benefit of the depth and impact of the pandemic. It was in a puddle and claimed to be a swimmer.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt