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guivx5's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I find interesting that every Jenkins book I've read so far differs quite a bit in their formats. "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo" bases itself in an interview recording scenario; "Daisy Jones & The Six" is centered around an actual interview transcript. "Malibu Rising", on the other hand, is centered around what happens when the cameras are turned off.
The book is divided in two very defined parts, a very bold move. It was, together with her cutting-edge writing style, risky: if the story was not well supported, it would fall upon itself. But it didn't, because it is a hell of a story. Maybe missing some bits here and there, but very consistent. The consistency between her books is a prime indicator of the care and passion put in these stories. You can feel, with every line, Jenkin's efforts to honor these characters.
About the inconsistencies, they're truly not the biggest deal. Not even that big of a deal.
The book's two parts are very different, with the first one focusing on the past and the second one truly devoting itself to express the wild nature of an out-of-control party. Again, risky. But I like it.
The most heartbreaking thing for Jenkins's fans after reading "Malibu Rising" is realizing that Mick Riva appeared in almost every recent book of hers. He was everywhere, but never where he was needed: with his children.
...
I swear to God, this woman puts crack between the lines of her books.
Graphic: Abandonment, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Infidelity, Sexism, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Addiction, and Alcohol
Moderate: Chronic illness, Sexual content, Sexism, Misogyny, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Car accident, and Gun violence
marieos'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
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Addiction, Violence, Chronic illness, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Car accident, Gun violence, and Infidelity
Minor: Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Abortion, Blood, and Miscarriage
annoyedhumanoid's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i most enjoyed the plots concerning the core four siblings and, later, their plus-one. you'd think they be the majority of the plot, but there are a lot of subplots that have little-to-no bearing on the main storyline, and i understand wanting to make this gigantic party with all these interesting people feel more alive, but after a while i stopped caring and just wanted to skip to the Rivas. it was overall pretty good though
book cover discussion: the British one is so much better than that of the United States, like the pretty sunset/fire (👀) colors, the serif font. unfortunately it doesn't carry over perfectly to the square aspect ratio for the audiobook.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent, Drug use, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Infidelity, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, and Grief
Moderate: Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Blood, Violence, Child abuse, Cursing, and Death
Minor: Body shaming, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Medical content, Vomit, Car accident, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Miscarriage, and Police brutality
cristinareading's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death of parent, Drug use, Alcoholism, Sexism, Violence, and Infidelity
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Car accident and Fire/Fire injury
bookishkale's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
I like the overarching story, I always appreciate a story that has two different timelines, but I don't know if it worked as well for me in this case. I like the Riva siblings, all of them endearing in their own special way. I liked hearing from each other them. Along the lines of TJR's other books, the characters are really the backbone of this story. Without the Rive siblings being so interesting, the rest of the story doesn't have much merit to me. I know Mick is supposed to be a flawed character, we have seen that in plenty of his other appearances in the TJR cinematic universe, but I don't really care for his and June's love story. I find it a little lackluster. I think TJR just needed to go a little further with everything in this book. Every one of the siblings' emotions are so stunted, and I understand why in the grand scheme of life, but in a book, go further. I felt like everything was just out of the Riva's hands, brushing their hands of everything. I feel like there is no good conclusion to anything, but maybe that's the point? I don't know, it feels a little messy to me. I didn't really like the cuts to random strangers just because they were at this party, I felt like it took away too much from the impact of the story.
If you like TJR, I would say you should still pick up the book to connect more with her little universe that she has going on. If you want an intro in this, I would go with Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo first.
Graphic: Gaslighting, Death of parent, Grief, Drug use, Alcoholism, Sexism, Infidelity, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Gun violence, Police brutality, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
iulia619's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Minor: Alcoholism, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Car accident, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Grief, Police brutality, and Infidelity
jessy_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment and Suicide
Moderate: Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Pregnancy
kayabennett's review against another edition
- 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
firstly, i absolutely love how the events of the book all is wrapped up in one day (with the exception of the flashbacks). i like medium/fast paced books so this definitely was the one for me. i actually started reading malibu rising because the secret history was being too slow for me and i needed to read something else before i fell into a book slump.
for the characters, i am so in love with each and everyone of them (except mick, fuck you. you know what you did.) i am especially in love with june and the way she was talked about by her children made me tear up about every single time. yes, she had flaws and she knew that but they were because of mick’s actions and i hate him for that. nina-baby, you deserve the world and more (also, fuck you brandon). the way she was so selfless to care for her siblings after her mother’s death and even before it makes nina so lovable. nina had been put through so much (as so did all the other siblings) and i hope she’s living her best life in portugal.
i also want to mention that tjr’s books all being in the same universe is literally my favorite thing ever. seeing mentions of people from daisy homes and the six and evelyn hugo lights up my face.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Infidelity
Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Grief, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Blood, Gun violence, Infertility, Vomit, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Abortion, Cursing, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, and Violence
abbrillopezz'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
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Classism, Gaslighting, Grief, Abortion, Addiction, Body shaming, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Stalking, Vomit, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Abandonment, Ableism, Alcohol, Car accident, Sexual content, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Police brutality, Misogyny, and Sexual harassment
alannahberkeley'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
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Misogyny, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Drug abuse, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Miscarriage and Abortion