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Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'
The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall
29 reviews
ahopper7's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book was marketed incorrectly. It’s not a cozy witchy small town romance. There was so much potential in the premise but it desperately needed more editing to hone in on a real plot and handle its topics in a thoughtful way.
Pros (kind of):
- It definitely has some cozy elements especially in the first quarter of the book
- I loved the family element it was *trying* to incorporate
- The recipes at the end of each chapter added nicely to the story, not enough to redeem but still cute
- The magic was soo close to being a mix of Practical Magic and Mayfair Witches (depending on character) but it wasn’t executed well
Cons:
- The romance subplot is not done well and the characters or their romance are not developed
- The book very carelessly handled serious topics like rape, murder and attempted suicide which didn’t sit well with me and is the main reason behind my rating
- Overall, the story or the characters were just not developed. The team around this book really should have spent more time fleshing out one or two of the plot points instead of throwing in several different story lines and not executing any of them well.
Pros (kind of):
- It definitely has some cozy elements especially in the first quarter of the book
- I loved the family element it was *trying* to incorporate
- The recipes at the end of each chapter added nicely to the story, not enough to redeem but still cute
- The magic was soo close to being a mix of Practical Magic and Mayfair Witches (depending on character) but it wasn’t executed well
Cons:
- The romance subplot is not done well and the characters or their romance are not developed
- The book very carelessly handled serious topics like rape, murder and attempted suicide which didn’t sit well with me and is the main reason behind my rating
- Overall, the story or the characters were just not developed. The team around this book really should have spent more time fleshing out one or two of the plot points instead of throwing in several different story lines and not executing any of them well.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Abandonment, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Rape, and Suicide attempt
meggy1967's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
3.75
I did enjoy the book but I felt the dialogue was rather stilted. The main character was likeable as were the majority of the side characters. The ending felt incredibly rushed given the amount of build up given throughout the entire book. There was a LOT of mentions of religion and God, so if you’re uncomfortable with that I’d be aware.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Infidelity, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Cancer
hlbennett's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This read was what, as a Millennial, I imagine mid is. So much attention seems to be paid to parts that don't matter while not enough attention is paid to things that really would. Parts that are uninteresting drag on while parts that are interesting are sped up, like the rushed ending. The things you want explained aren't going to be explained well enough but you're going to get so much detail when Sadie is cooking. The most interesting part of the book is the concept of the magic, the family curses, the origin, who has what magic and what are their curses, but most of those explanations aren't there or aren't explained enough. And not in an artistic, "What did Billie Joe MacAllister throw off the Tallahatchie Bridge?" kind of way.
I'm left with so many questions and I reread these passages several times to make sure that I wasn't missing anything. I thought surely, the explanation is there, I'm just missing it.
Like:
- What's up with the voice at Old Ballier [sp]?
- Why did Jake leave in the first place?
- Is Florence the conduit/amplifier or is Seth?
- And if not Florence, why wasn't she supposed to have children?
- Why was there a death owed for the lives of the twins and then Florence couldn't see them, but she's had Sage without mention of murder and shows up with her in tow?
- What are Florence's powers?
- If it's a life for a life, how on earth did Gigi get out of paying the blood debt without a second murder? And why didn't they just do that again? Or better yet, if sacrificing your magic paid the debt, why didn't Gigi or Florence do that decades ago so that this poor kid didn't grow up going through what he says he went through?
Moving on from poor explanations, there are a number of parts that are supposed to be "twists" that are as straight as a board.
- The ghost in the back yard? Gigi gives some ominous direction to protect the house and we're led to believe it's for this spirit, but really I guess it was for nothing because turns out it was just papaw. The reader learns this in a 5 second conversation Sadie has with her mother.
- The damage to the garden? Turns out it's tied to Sadie's emotions but doesn't manifest during her first or second heartbreaks; no, it waits until she's 28 and feeling sad. Also, it seems a bit late in the year for regrowing entire gardens. Even with the magic of it all, why would Jake, who hadn't had confirmation of Sadie's magic, replant a garden in what, September?
- Sadie's sacrifice? First, Gigi knew of a solution and instead of having a conversation with Sadie about it, she chose to leave it in a letter. Yes, because that's what any responsible parent would do when the life of their child hung in the balance and they had literal months to have these kinds of conversations. Second, we're supposed to believe that everyone who'd read that letter didn't understand it meant Sadie giving up her magic? Come on. Third, Sadie just decides to unalive herself with, I can't remember how much time, until the full moon? Like she's not going to wait until they're sure they've tried everything else?
- I almost forgot it, but THE FAKE PREGNANCY? Are you kidding.
It's just not a well built story. I'm not one of those people who can't suspend a measure of logic to enjoy a story and even so, this has too many loose ends to be worth the read.
I'm left with so many questions and I reread these passages several times to make sure that I wasn't missing anything. I thought surely, the explanation is there, I'm just missing it.
- What's up with the voice at Old Ballier [sp]?
- Why did Jake leave in the first place?
- Is Florence the conduit/amplifier or is Seth?
- And if not Florence, why wasn't she supposed to have children?
- Why was there a death owed for the lives of the twins and then Florence couldn't see them, but she's had Sage without mention of murder and shows up with her in tow?
- What are Florence's powers?
- If it's a life for a life, how on earth did Gigi get out of paying the blood debt without a second murder? And why didn't they just do that again? Or better yet, if sacrificing your magic paid the debt, why didn't Gigi or Florence do that decades ago so that this poor kid didn't grow up going through what he says he went through?
Moving on from poor explanations, there are a number of parts that are supposed to be "twists" that are as straight as a board.
- The ghost in the back yard? Gigi gives some ominous direction to protect the house and we're led to believe it's for this spirit, but really I guess it was for nothing because turns out it was just papaw. The reader learns this in a 5 second conversation Sadie has with her mother.
- The damage to the garden? Turns out it's tied to Sadie's emotions but doesn't manifest during her first or second heartbreaks; no, it waits until she's 28 and feeling sad. Also, it seems a bit late in the year for regrowing entire gardens. Even with the magic of it all, why would Jake, who hadn't had confirmation of Sadie's magic, replant a garden in what, September?
- Sadie's sacrifice? First, Gigi knew of a solution and instead of having a conversation with Sadie about it, she chose to leave it in a letter. Yes, because that's what any responsible parent would do when the life of their child hung in the balance and they had literal months to have these kinds of conversations. Second, we're supposed to believe that everyone who'd read that letter didn't understand it meant Sadie giving up her magic? Come on. Third, Sadie just decides to unalive herself with, I can't remember how much time, until the full moon? Like she's not going to wait until they're sure they've tried everything else?
- I almost forgot it, but THE FAKE PREGNANCY? Are you kidding.
It's just not a well built story. I'm not one of those people who can't suspend a measure of logic to enjoy a story and even so, this has too many loose ends to be worth the read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Death of parent
heatherjchin's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Murder, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Cursing, Grief, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Rape, and Stalking
kiahsm's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
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? No
2.0
Funny enough I finally finished reading this book after buying it on my kindle a few months back, reading a few chapters, becoming bored and closing out the book. I was on a trip across the country when I bought a "blind book date" wrapped in plain paper from a bookstore that had an enticing description on it. I unwrapped it and found this book, again. I decided I should finish it since it kept finding it's way back to me.
Don't get me wrong, this book is very cozy and sweet. I loved the nuggets of magic and Gigi's wisdom throughout. The recipes were a nice touch. I will say this isn't the type of book you want to tear through and not put down. It was more so a comforting and slow read.
Some quotes that hit me were the quotes on grief, as I recently lost my own grandmother to cancer. "What were you supposed to do after the matriarch died?" "The real consolation was seeing their own grief reflected in the eyes and tears of friends and neighbors and cafe patrons because it meant they were unified in their sorrow and love for a woman who had touched so many lives." Those sort of things you reflect on differently after losing someone you love. I appreciated the sincerity in the thought behind those words and showing the depth of Sadie's grief for such an important person in her life.
I felt that the characters had so much more potential for depth and character development, but it did feel very surface level. I also couldn't help myself rolling my eyes at "Jake" the small town firefighter who couldn't seem to be honest with himself or Sadie. Some parts of the story seemed like distractions and almost like the author couldn't choose which path she was going to go down story-line wise. The dark energy in the woods ends up being Sadie's grandfather? This didn't make much sense to me considering Sadie was supposed to be this very in-tune witch, but she couldn't differentiate an evil spirit and her grandpa? Just seemed a bit of a rush to close that part of the story because it didn't pan out the way it had initially been written.
I also have to mention, Gigi killing a man, and Sadie and her brother being the products of SA seemed almost glossed over, with no actual reflection from any of the characters on this part of the story line. It seemed like a heavy explanation to toss into the book without it being a bit more of a discussion.
Otherwise, this book is a cute and cozy read. It would be a great book to read through the fall and I look forward to seeing other books this author puts out as I am sure her writing will grow with practice.
Don't get me wrong, this book is very cozy and sweet. I loved the nuggets of magic and Gigi's wisdom throughout. The recipes were a nice touch. I will say this isn't the type of book you want to tear through and not put down. It was more so a comforting and slow read.
Otherwise, this book is a cute and cozy read. It would be a great book to read through the fall and I look forward to seeing other books this author puts out as I am sure her writing will grow with practice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Grief, Death, Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Rape, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault
Minor: Murder
michelejenn's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Suicide attempt, Cancer, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
touchegiantsquid's review against another edition
dark
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
The thing that bothered me the most was the main character's suicide attempt led to her love confessing his feelings to her.
Was it just me or did it feel like she and her twin brother had too much sexual tension? Maybe it just didn't sound like different characters had different enough voices.
I was surprised her best friend referred to her as cariño - I thought you'd only use the masculine suffix for people with masculine identities.
Was it just me or did it feel like she and her twin brother had too much sexual tension? Maybe it just didn't sound like different characters had different enough voices.
I was surprised her best friend referred to her as cariño - I thought you'd only use the masculine suffix for people with masculine identities.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Death, Cancer, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness
celestepaed's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Mental illness and Pregnancy
lorinafletcherhill's review against another edition
Those book os horrible. It's supposed to be a cozy witchy fantasy, and it's mostly church with suicide ideation with a cancer death thrown in too. Almost no magic, and definitely not cosy. The writing is bad and it should have come with content warnings!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Cancer, and Terminal illness
anntharai's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Cried. Twice. Amazing storytelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Grief, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Abandonment, and Death of parent