Reviews with content warning for Domestic abuse - People Person

Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

People Person by Candice Carty-Williams

31 reviews

beckyyreadss's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective 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

4.0

I enjoyed Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams and I wanted to read more of her work. My brother kindly gifted me this book for Christmas, and I went into this book blind and was not expecting it at all.

This book is based on Dimple Pennington, she knew of her half-siblings but she doesn’t really know them. Five people who don’t have anything in common except for the faint memories of being drive around Brixton in their dad’s gold jeep and some complex abandonment issues. Dimple has bigger things to think about. She's thirty, and her life isn’t really going anywhere. An aspiring lifestyle influencer with a terrible and wayward boyfriend, Dimple’s life has shrunk to the size of a phone screen. Despite a small but loyal following, she’s never felt more alone. That all changes when a catastrophic event brings her half siblings Nikisha, Danny, Lizzie and Prynce crashing back into her life. When they’re all forced to reconnect with their absent father, Cyril Pennington, they never knew things get even more complicated.

This plot had you from the first chapter. I thought it was going to be like a black Brady bunch and then it was domestic abuse and attempted murder. Then it just got worst and worst. These children have got so much unresolved trauma. I wanted to hug every one of those children. Each sibling has their own personality and their own thing going on. It was like being in my household, all the ex-wives hating each other. I was getting deja-vu just from the exes being together and bickering at a funeral.

I would have loved for this to be multiple POV, just with all the siblings and everyone involved in the story. I felt like this story hooked you from the first chapter but then the middle bit was quite slow going and I had to fight to push through to finish it.

Overall, this book was gripping and dramatic and I still want to hug each of those kids.

Content Warnings

blackgirlslovespice's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

Read People Person as a part of the book club I’m apart of and I feel conflicted. The protagonist “Dimple” left me feeling more annoyed than anything but during certain periods of the book, she grew on me and even made me laugh. I don’t really think she underwent any major character development throughout the bulk of the novel, but during the last few chapters she developed a keen sense of self awareness by proxy of her siblings forcing her to come to terms with her true self. The remainder of the Pennington are a dynamic and interesting set of “people”. Danny was very lovable, Prince was great for comedic relief during tense moments, Lizzie was just as annoying as Dimple but she was exceptionally logical, & Nykisha served as the unofficial matriarch. Although this event was what reunited these disjointed siblings, it wasn’t the major focus of the novel. Familial trauma & loyalty to self and community were themes that ran rampant throughout and manifested in the challenges each Pennington faced. To conclude, I did enjoy this read for the lost part but the ending was a little lackluster. I was hoping for a slightly more climactic end!

Content Warnings