Reviews

Such an important lesson to make people aware of—about what abuse in a relationship looks like—but unfortunately the impact was diluted by the writing. The use of flashbacks to reveal details of the relationship meant that there was an unfortunate “telling not showing” overtone to the whole story. Having survived an emotionally abuse relationship myself, I really wish that Bourne had chosen to reveal what abuse looks like in a slow and suffocating accumulation of its little details, instead of stopping every time Reese did or said something and almost saying to the reader, Red flag. Do you see this? THIS is a red flag/gaslighting/etc. It’s easier I think to ignore an individual’s specific actions that are explicitly labeled, for example, gaslighting than it is to realize that tiny little nuggets of wrongness here and there escalate into all-encompassing abuse before you realize it.

jutacirule's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

nikmahie's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I enjoyed it, but it dragged on for a bit too long. I don’t even want to know how many times the word “cried” was used in this book, but it’s definitely too many times.

It was an easy and fun read that made me laugh and cry. I couldn’t lay it down, even though most of the story was pretty predictable. I felt engaged and really wanted to know how Amelie would end up at the end.

Content Warnings

emptzuu's review

Go to review page

I've extensively delved into literature revolving around themes like trauma, sexual assault, and mental health, but unfortunately, this particular book fails to resonate with me. The protagonist, Amelia, carries a profound weight of anxiety and sadness from the outset, which feels a bit too heavy. Unlike "Adelaide" by Genevieve Wheeler, which adeptly navigates toxic relationships and mental health, this book suffers from a sluggish pace in establishing character backgrounds. In comparison to "The Way I Used To Be," which tackles sexual assault with more poignancy, the writing in this book lacked the emotional impact I anticipated. It seems that I might not be the intended audience for this narrative. In my opinion, numerous other books handle similar themes more effectively and compellingly.

hanne842's review

Go to review page

reflective sad slow-paced

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

1.5

inmaculada's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.0

emybooksandcoffee's review

Go to review page

4.0

Aside from the tremendously important and eye opening message at the core of the book, I want to talk about the writing style. The writing style, in my opinion had the perfect amount of stream of consciousness, dialogue, plot movement, introspection and character development. Rarely do I encounter such enjoyable prose which doesn't bore me for even a second or I don't think it's dragging on or moving too fast. Every aspect of good storytelling was present, it had a fair share of details (not too many, not too little), each character, as seen from Amelie's eyes was very well fleshed, and the story progressed in such a way it never felt forced. In short, the flow of the book was almost perfect and that's the best way for the message to come across in the most beneficial way.

More...