Reviews with content warning for Mass/school shootings - We Are the Light

Reviews tagging 'Mass/school shootings'

We Are the Light by Matthew Quick

56 reviews

carmenvillaman's review

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective sad fast-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

4.0

Content Warnings

katergirl12's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Despite difficult circumstances described in the book, the real heart of the story is about recovery and hope. That art, kindness, connection with others can heal us from even the deepest wounds.

Content Warnings

janayzelenko's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective tense 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

4.25

Content Warnings

cassidy's review

Go to review page

dark emotional sad medium-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

5.0

</3 this book was so sad -- also I like that we were fully taken along with Lucas and could be with him in his journey. and although the trope of "healing isn't linear" is cheesy the way that it was portrayed wasn't. also loved the theme of that we all have monsters inside of us (as opposed to labeling people as either good or bad). made me want to learn more about Jungian analysis.

Also, I kind of liked the portrayal of the politician character not as being villainous but as not being what the town needed to heal. I'm not trying to be all "thoughts and prayers" and obviously gun control is needed, but that does seem separate from a healing process and i like the perspective of "yes we need gun control, but i can't put my pain on a pedestal for political gain" idk I guess survivors of any sort are often expected to be political voices that call for change/ that is the only acceptable option presented to deal with trauma and that feels a little unfair to them. so anyways i liked the perspective that this book took in respect to that.

I'm not sure how I feel about the conclusion that the idea that Darcy was with him as an angel was fully him dissociating or a hallucination -- but I guess still this is the perspective of Lucas as he is an unreliable narrator and I guess I'm okay with finding my own truth somewhere in between

Content Warnings

cc_shelflove's review

Go to review page

emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.0

I feel so bad giving this book three stars because the subject matter is so important and heartbreaking, but i just don’t think this author is for me. After Lucas and his Jungian analyst’s wives were killed in the tragic Majestic Theater shooting, he receives a letter that Karl is no longer practicing. How can he continue healing without his analyst? Enter Eli, the younger brother of the Majestic Theater shooter. Lucas and Eli have both lost their way. Can they lean on each other in an attempt to move forward?

This book seemed to ramble on and on and on. The chapters were way too long. Hell, the last one was 47 pages! The religious and spiritual aspects of Lucas’s letters bored me a bit, but this may partially be my own fault for choosing to go into most of my reads completely blind. 😇 While the story was thought-provoking at times, the language was not. It honestly took me way too long to get through these 240 pages, because I simply was not engaged. Reviews for this one will probably be all over the board.

Content Warnings

thatswhatshanread's review

Go to review page

Very long-winded, didn’t care for the format it was written in (all letters). Too much Carl Jung philosophical talk that is probably interesting if you, too, consider yourself a Jungian analyst, but I am not so I was confused and put off by it, unfortunately! Had a decent premise. Would’ve worked better perhaps in a different format.

Content Warnings