Reviews with content warning for Child death - One Day in December

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

One Day in December by Josie Silver

48 reviews

skylover's review

funny lighthearted sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25

I needed a lighthearted read after getting into too many romantasy books and this story checked the box. While I enjoyed Sarah and Laurie's friendship, the rest of this plot was repetitive and dry.

I really didn't like Jack. It didn't sound like he even knew or liked Laurie the first time he met her at the New Year's party. He was awful toward Oscar, in that "I'm the only one who can have her" mindset even though he himself was taken, him telling Laurie not to tell Sarah about their kids after he initiated it and acting like they were equally guilty when that was his fault, and how he never seemed to care for anyone - even Laurie!! - especially when it came to romance (that Amanda and Sarah both tensed as he tried to arouse them when he dated them respectively shows that he isn't as generous in bed as first believed) and only career-focused like Oscar as well.

. While this is technically a "love at first sight" book, it felt dull at the end

when they FINALLY got together but you don't get any of the reward about where they end up, especially after time jumps of TEN years, we can't get a 10 months later chapter?? Let alone, feel any chemistry between them?? Their romance seemed like the type that liked each other because they couldn't have each other, not because of their actual characteristics

. This book also was a comedy to me with the amount of times Laurie said she wasn't religious but then went on to say "God knows" or "Only God would know" - like m'am, God doesn't know anything if you're not religious. Also the typos were the same amount of times alcohol these people consumed were mentioned.

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miilk's review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.75

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abbeyroad1410's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.75

I'm going to start by saying the actual writing of this book was wonderful. The formatting was interesting and a unique concept that kept me engaged until the end, even though the rest of the story drove me absolutely nuts. Jumping between dates and years can be confusing and convoluted, but having them sectioned off was very creative.
Now to the actual plot of the book. The main characters, Laurie and Jack are absolutely despicable people, but not in a way that reading about them keeps you invested.
Laurie is a sad-sack who says she has ambitious but mostly complains about not achieving as much as she wants. In addition, for as ambitious as she claims she is in the journalism industry, we never truly see her succeed. She also happens to be the worst best friend ever. I would much rather read a book about the dynamic, forgiving, and caring, Sarah. She has trauma which she briefly discloses, but it mostly seems to work as an excuse to get with her best friend's boyfriend.
Jack, similarly, is terrible. He seems to sleep with anyone who will distract him from Laurie. Additionally, he likes to claim that he's doing the right thing for both of them, but that seems to be a way of preventing the development of a guilty conscience. I can't decide if I hate him more or less than Laurie, but I think I'm going to go with more for many reasons.
Overall, this book cannot overcome its despicable main characters. The main problem could've been solved three years into the decade long saga (if not sooner), and it would've saved a lot of characters a lot of hurt.

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abbykruth's review

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.75

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miranda_is_reading's review

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emotional lighthearted sad medium-paced

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

3.75

Slow at times, but still a decent read. I found it relatable to a relationship I had in the past.

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thatswhatshanread's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.5

Twas a very sad discovery to finally read this Christmas-themed romcom and find out that it was quite meh. Normally I love a romance story that spans many years, but this could have easily been summed up in less than one year, maybe two. It was so frustrating! I also love a second chance romance, friends-to-lovers storyline; however, this one fell flat for me because I never particularly felt much chemistry between our two inevitable lovers. All in all, every relationship in the book was rather dull.

Also, our MMC wasn’t especially charming or redeeming? It was hard to root for them getting together after reading all this build up of how he treated the other women in his life. Idk.

The writing was good and I liked the setting for the most part, I just really wish the characters were more developed and the plot lines more exciting and thought-provoking.

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theonlybaillie's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

3.75

I enjoyed this book. I had ALL of the feelings while reading it, as second-chance love is a trope that really hits for me and makes me cry basically every time.

The main characters in this book felt very real to me...in the sense that they had very annoying flaws that were, unfortunately, realistic IMO. Jack was emotionally immature and wanted to blame others and deflect any emotional pain or self-wrongdoing. Laurie was a pushover and bent to others wishes and plans until the end of the book where she finally decided that enough was enough and took ownership of her life (FINALLY!).

Relationships ebb and flow as seasons of life change, and I love that Jack, Sarah, and Laurie were still part of each others lives throughout their twenties. Lifelong friendships are a blessing, even though they can get quite messy over the years.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. It is not the light-hearted Christmas read that most people look for this time of year, but I appreciated the story that it told.

I also appreciated the phrase "kissed stardust into my mouth", because I have never heard it before and thought it was creative and funny. :)

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