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wwnter'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
4.0
Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, Child death, Infidelity, Sexism, and Misogyny
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Racial slurs
tahjah'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
5.0
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Xenophobia
tinyjude's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I didn't expect to feel sorry for every single character and somehow understand their decisions and words even though I didn't agree or particularly liked them, e.g.
I felt most sorry for the kids, since a lot of the times, they just suffered the consequences of their parent's traumas, like how James treated so bad Nath because he was afraid he would be like him, how Marilyn put so much pressure into her daughter and didn't spare a moment to think about what Lydia wanted all along.
So, I felt mostly sorry for Lydia, Hannah, Nath and also Jack, since he took the blame because he knew that was what Nath needed and tried to help Lydia.
Lydia's story, her thoughts, feelings and actions were so desperate that I couldn't hate her for her family when she died. I felt suffocated reading her emotions and I think the worst scenes were the lake ones. All the scenes around the lake were so hard to read, especially Lydia's and Nath's at the end of the novel.
Celeste's writing style is beautiful, the pace is good, the emotions are also really good. She doesn't give as many details as I might have liked, however I felt that it was perfect for the novel. Leaving some things unsaid. I would definitely love to re-read this in the future and spend more time digesting every line because I didn't stop for hours until I reached the end because I needed to know more about the characters, about why Lydia did what she did, about how each and one of them dealt with the pain and the grief.
I think this novel surely served it's purpose. It was a character-driven novel, focused on the family of Lydia rather than just Lydia's story, giving us both the parents and brother/sister's reactions, which was really nice. The writing style was also pleasing, the pace felt perfect and what I expected more was the issue about identity, feeling lost because you feel different, and the race conflict (? I dont know how to explain it without making too many spoilers, but it is definitely one of the key points of the novel and the reason why I picked this book up (and also because it's centered around a family and I love family dynamics)) etc. It was precisely the reason why I picked this book, because I wanted to read more about this topic, to get informed and it was such a shock to see how not that long ago mixed marriages were seen as something horrible and the type of comments James (and the kids also) received. It made me feel really sad and angry. I think I can now understand a bit better the issues and the type of thoughts people in these situations have.
I didn't think I would give this book 5 stars but after finishing the last sentence I just felt like it was the right thing to do since it gave me all I asked and more and it was so well done. I have not a single complain about this book, nothing to pinpoint. It was a really solid book and I am so glad I stumbled upon it on a youtube video about these type of recommendations, because there's no translation to my native language and I wouldn't probably have heard of it if I didn't try to seek for gems like this from time to time.
Please, Mrs Celeste Ng, if you want to and can, don't stop writing and providing us with such delightful but tearful stories
Graphic: Xenophobia, Racism, and Suicide
callikat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Child death and Mental illness
Moderate: Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Infidelity
morganperks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Racism, Child death, Death, Suicide, Racial slurs, Grief, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Child abuse, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Body horror, and Pregnancy
christineazopf'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Xenophobia, Suicide, Sexism, and Racism
mpitts'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
4.75
Graphic: Death and Xenophobia
sinsku's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Death, Grief, and Hate crime
Minor: Xenophobia
bee02's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Xenophobia
joanabryant's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Capítulos demasiado longos. Partes desnecessarias e muito aborrecidas
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Racism, and Infidelity
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Mental illness