Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - All My Mother's Lovers

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

All My Mother's Lovers by Ilana Masad

17 reviews

caseymelanson's review

emotional slow-paced

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

2.75

I really loved the plot of the book but the writing style wasn't for me. Would still recommend it, it just is a little slow going!

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acresofclams's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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sundayfever's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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cheye13's review against another edition

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mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.0

I initially projected a premise onto this book that it never actually promised. I thought it would be a journey through a mother's lovers prior to her husband/family, resulting in understanding the mother as a person and individual. That is nowhere near what this is about.

There is a bad-faith assumption the narration pushes the reader toward for the majority of the book.

As someone who believes sexuality is never/should never be a plot twist, I was disappointed with the 'gatcha' nature of the reveal.

It's especially frustrating when Maggie clings to this assumption despite all evidence to the contrary.

And it's unrealistic, I would argue; as a queer person, she should be more likely to second guess and criticize heteronormativity. Perhaps there's a blind spot when it comes to one's own parents, but there are points in the book that it feels obtuse.

There's also excerpts in Maggie's mother's POV, which felt underutilized and unimportant. They fall somewhere in between brief interludes and a second timeline, which makes them both too long and too short to be effective. Ultimately, the book rests on a crippling failure of Maggie and her mother to effectively communicate, even past her mother's death.

I would have enjoyed this more if Maggie grew more consistently over the course of her journey. As is, she goes on a sporadic road trip and grieves aggressively. A number of character development threads are left hanging, which could have lent the story more purpose. As is, there's a whole lot of nothing for a lackluster message.

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bookmaddie's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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shoohoob's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Found this book through my Storygraph recommendations and I enjoyed it. The amount of times I cried….hit a little too close to home. Was a little cringe at times (also has one of the worst closing lines I’ve ever heard) but I honestly like it.

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