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emily_mh'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
3.25
On the other hand, I think some other rep and information was not done well. For example, I really wish Nathan had been fleshed out as a character. It kind of felt like Deaver took the stereotypical "golden retriever" LI archetype and left it at that, giving him no motivations or desires unrelated to Ben. While it was obvious Ben and Nathan had a connection, one I was rooting for, it still felt like I barely knew Nathan. This is the book's biggest issue, because I think it is an example of the situation that readers and reviewers of the global majority have been pointing out for ages, where white authors write a LI of the global majority whose only purpose in the book is to assist the white MC in their development. If I am wrong here or out of my lane, I will fully delete this review. I wanted to flag it in case I wasn't.
On top of this, the book presents some misinformation about being gay, ace, and aro. It implies that a nonbinary person like Ben cannot be gay because being gay is about being attracted to the same gender, and as Ben doesn't have a gender, they cannot experience same-gender attraction. In reality, being gay is simply about non-women being attracted to non-women. This is the quote I am referring to:
"And besides, I don’t exactly have a gender, and being gay implies being interested in the same gender."
It also implies that to be ace or aro is to be touch averse, when only some aces and aros are touch averse - it's this very piece of misinformation that means so many aces and aros don't realise they are asexual or aromantic for ages. Literally a simple "some" in this sentence would have fixed this misinformation:
“'Touch aversion can be common in people who deal with panic attacks, or people dealing with anxiety. In fact, there are some people who are just born or develop that way, like asexual or aromantic people.'”
So, yeah. Do with this what you will.
Rep: bisexual NB MC, bisexual LI of the global majority (ethnicity not explicitly stated), Bahraini Shia Muslim pansexual NB SC, Chinese-American SC, SC of the global majority (Ben's therapist Dr. Taylor, whose ethnicity is also not explicitly stated), Black SC (implied, ethnicity not explicitly stated), Korean-American SC with ADHD
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Transphobia
Moderate: Abandonment and Cursing
Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, Death, Physical abuse, Drug use, Medical content, Misogyny, Outing, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit
Major: disownment, misgendering (mostly uninformed as Ben isn't out to most people) Moderate: body dysmorphia Minor: one implied use of the transphobic t-slur, suicidal ideation, off-page use of the homophobic f-slur, 1 HP reference, menstruationbeac'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
Graphic: Abandonment, Panic attacks/disorders, and Transphobia
theuncannydani'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
3.0
Graphic: Dysphoria, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, and Transphobia
Moderate: Cursing and Sexism
Minor: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Violence
alexlily's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Outing, Deadnaming, Panic attacks/disorders, Dysphoria, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Transphobia
Moderate: Stalking and Physical abuse
Minor: Pregnancy, Islamophobia, and Religious bigotry
silasreads'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
4.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Deadnaming, Mental illness, Grief, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Transphobia, and Vomit
helenope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The romance was ok, but didn’t seem like the main plot point. I was more interested in the sibling guilt and abandonment plot point.
I would have loved to read a book about Mariam, who seems to be a much more interesting person than Ben and the fact that they are best friends seems a tad bit unrealistic.
Graphic: Abandonment
thebookpaiges'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
4.25
Graphic: Abandonment, Homophobia, Transphobia, Dysphoria, Cursing, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
tallandblonde's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Homophobia, and Transphobia
gwenisnonbinary's review
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Sexual assault and Alcohol
abrokenmirror'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
3.75
but some of the side plots were a wee bit off to me, ben’s relationship with nathan felt quite unrealistic to me, and after getting used to ben’s personality, then them randomly bringing out the jokes after not wanted to even talk to anyone felt a little ehhhhh? you know, it felt like it wasn’t them
i did love the representation in this book very much, and i feel like its a very good book for non-binary or trans youth to read, but if representation isn’t what you came for, i feel you won’t like this book
Graphic: Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, and Transphobia
Moderate: Cursing, Dysphoria, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Violence
Minor: Vomit