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kaylaoswald's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- 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
3.0
ravenk28's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Mental illness, and Bullying
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Torture
yersomyapestis's review against another edition
4.0
I liked the book, but after absolutely falling in love with the podcast a couple years before, I was mildly dissapointed by it... I believe that one of the elements that makes The Bright Sessions such a wonderful listen is the diverse cast, but Caleb's and Adam's story, while adorable, isn't that action-packed. As a teenager reading the book, it read like it was clearly written by an adult trying to imagine how teenagers operate, and I'm not sure that the larger plot at the end was well paced... However, I'm glad that I read it because it was quick and sweet (I finished it easily in two days) and it was a great reminder of an amazing story!
I'm excited for the next one!
I'm excited for the next one!
zombiefoxgutz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Really good book listen to the podcast to know more about the whole story but this book was a really good mlm book for me growing up
honeywaffles's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
Other than the typical teens conflict stuff, a good story. The magical realism of an Empath was really interesting. Kind of a rushed ending.
mmmariaaa's review against another edition
4.0
I got the ARC from work and its the first one i have actually read which is the highest praise I can start with. Initially the cover is what drew me in, I love the colors and it really is a beautiful visual to go along with Caleb's descriptions of the feelings he experiences. Going into the actual book I hadn't listened to The Bright Session before though I've been aware of them for a couple years and I decided to listen simultaneously while reading which was a really enjoyable experience. Absolutely would recommend to a friend. I really love both of these disaster children and during my entire reading I found myself laughing and yelling and poorly explaining to my roommate the goings on until I convinced him to read it after me.
tanemariacris's review against another edition
I love The Bright Sessions. A lot. It's one of the most soothing, comforting experiences I've ever head with a story and the cast of characters have secured themselves a permanent residence in the home shared by my found family of fictional people. Yes, of course that's a thing, Remus Lupin is offering me some chocolate right now. I listened to this podcast while sitting for hours on my bathroom floor with a sticky hair mask, through panic attacks, sleepless nights, and weird times (what can I say, March 2020 has been an insane year) and it somehow made everything better. Greener. So the point of this, other than being a great opportunity for me to gush once again about The Bright Sessions since I've already told all of my friends about it, is to say that if Lauren Shippen wrote the grocery list of these characters I would read and enjoy it most probably. And this is a great book in its own right so, no surprises here, I got all of the fuzzy, warm feelings of joy and of oh my they are too cute and relatable that were to be expected.
theos_bookcase's review against another edition
3.0
i’m not really sure about the rating for this book. I loved the characters (mostly) but hated how cheesy it was. That’s probably just my own cynicism. I really didn’t like the fantasy aspect. Sure, bending genres is good and all but I went into the book expecting something else. Therefore, Shippin is not at fault for my decision to pick up this book.
While characters such as Adam stood out as realistically drawn, other characters bugged me. Sure, this is a young adult novel and I think this book would have appealed to me had I been younger. As I’m older, I don’t think I’m in the demographic. The book started off so so good. I loved how Shippin starts right with the action.
Unfortunately, what really bugged me was the overuse of metaphors, similes and her pacing. The amount of times the word ‘emotion’ came up bugged me, but what can you say? It’s a book about an ‘empath.’
I don’t know why, but I feel like this book was wrongly marketed? For example, it was disguised as appealing to a different demographic audience. I started off thinking it would be really really good but (side rant) Dr Bright was so so so annoying and these random ass characters that are thrown in during the last minute. I liked some of the minor characters like the studious characters who worked with Adam but it was too unrealistic for me to take it seriously.
While characters such as Adam stood out as realistically drawn, other characters bugged me. Sure, this is a young adult novel and I think this book would have appealed to me had I been younger. As I’m older, I don’t think I’m in the demographic. The book started off so so good. I loved how Shippin starts right with the action.
Unfortunately, what really bugged me was the overuse of metaphors, similes and her pacing. The amount of times the word ‘emotion’ came up bugged me, but what can you say? It’s a book about an ‘empath.’
I don’t know why, but I feel like this book was wrongly marketed? For example, it was disguised as appealing to a different demographic audience. I started off thinking it would be really really good but (side rant) Dr Bright was so so so annoying and these random ass characters that are thrown in during the last minute. I liked some of the minor characters like the studious characters who worked with Adam but it was too unrealistic for me to take it seriously.