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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
Wow. I just finished. I cried so very much the entire last 1/3 of that book. It was hurtful. And beautiful. And brought up so many feelings from losing my dad. But not in a bad way. Maybe even in a cathartic way. But wow… I’m drained. And processing. Amazing.
10/10.
10/10.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This one was hard for me to get into, and maybe that’s why I didn’t enjoy it as much as other TJ Klune books.
I still like his writing though, and the most relatable part for me was grief.
I still like his writing though, and the most relatable part for me was grief.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
4.5 stars (re-read)
I'm so glad I re-read this book, there was quite a bit that forgot about.
This book follows Benji 5 years after the unexpected death of his father. Benji and his father were incredibly close and even after all these years, Benji is still drowning in his grief. One day, when he is close to his tipping point, the towns guardian angel falls to earth and becomes a huge and important part of Benji's life and healing process.
This book's depictions of grief, not only from Benji's point of view, but the views around him, is heart-wrenching. We follow Benji's grief not only through his present actions and thoughts, but through his flashbacks that show that he is trapped in the past. TJ Klune, as always, provides his characters with a wonderful family/found family support system and we see throughout this book as Benji begins to de-isolate himself and allows them to come in so they can heal together. We see him find the joy in life as he watch's Cal (the angel) experience human existence for the first time ever. We watch as characters try to overcome the anger they feel at the unfairness of life. Life that hurts you and knocks you down, no matter how good you are or how much you love or are loved. We the importance of not just having a support system, but also allowing them to help you. Not letting the anger you feel towards those who are no longer grieving as much as you are, to overtake you.
This story isn't just about grief. Its about giving love a second chance, even though its broken you in the past. It's about family support and betrayal. It's about a community coming together to support those who care for them and who they care deeply for. This book is about making sacrifices for the greater good and trying to live with the ramifications of others sacrifices.
This book made me mad, it made me laugh, cry, and it made me smile at the goodness that comes from people standing up for what they feel is right.
The only reason it's not a 5 star is because a few parts were a bit slow and repetitive.
If you like TJ Klune and haven't read this book! Do so!
PS. This book has references to what was supposed to be another series by TJ Klune. I believe he wrote book one (BURN), but decided not to continue with it, so pulled the book from Amazon. You may find yourself confused about these references to another plane, people who can control the elements and a coming darkness. Its a bit of a bummer that we get teased for a story that will never be. But oh well....at least we have this amazing story.
I'm so glad I re-read this book, there was quite a bit that forgot about.
This book follows Benji 5 years after the unexpected death of his father. Benji and his father were incredibly close and even after all these years, Benji is still drowning in his grief. One day, when he is close to his tipping point, the towns guardian angel falls to earth and becomes a huge and important part of Benji's life and healing process.
This book's depictions of grief, not only from Benji's point of view, but the views around him, is heart-wrenching. We follow Benji's grief not only through his present actions and thoughts, but through his flashbacks that show that he is trapped in the past. TJ Klune, as always, provides his characters with a wonderful family/found family support system and we see throughout this book as Benji begins to de-isolate himself and allows them to come in so they can heal together. We see him find the joy in life as he watch's Cal (the angel) experience human existence for the first time ever. We watch as characters try to overcome the anger they feel at the unfairness of life. Life that hurts you and knocks you down, no matter how good you are or how much you love or are loved. We the importance of not just having a support system, but also allowing them to help you. Not letting the anger you feel towards those who are no longer grieving as much as you are, to overtake you.
This story isn't just about grief. Its about giving love a second chance, even though its broken you in the past. It's about family support and betrayal. It's about a community coming together to support those who care for them and who they care deeply for. This book is about making sacrifices for the greater good and trying to live with the ramifications of others sacrifices.
This book made me mad, it made me laugh, cry, and it made me smile at the goodness that comes from people standing up for what they feel is right.
The only reason it's not a 5 star is because a few parts were a bit slow and repetitive.
If you like TJ Klune and haven't read this book! Do so!
PS. This book has references to what was supposed to be another series by TJ Klune. I believe he wrote book one (BURN), but decided not to continue with it, so pulled the book from Amazon. You may find yourself confused about these references to another plane, people who can control the elements and a coming darkness. Its a bit of a bummer that we get teased for a story that will never be. But oh well....at least we have this amazing story.
I really wanted to like this more than I did, but everything about this book is just so heavy-handed.
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
no one breaks my heart and makes me fall in love over and over like tj klune.
Also at Scrollin' Them Papers
This book is one of those that you just don't know which shelves to put into. It has a healthy dosages of everything: tragedy, romance, drama, self discovery, thriller, religions and paranormal. I had my moments of being awestruck just for its beautiful and totally appropriate writing in between my bouts of crying where I just wanted everything to stop.
Oh how true. Sigh.
Benji. I love you. I totally get and feel you. You are so strong, so angry and desperate, so impossibly human that I ache for you.
Cal. You are just the sweetest thing ever. ever. ever.
Big Eddie. Only the most perfect dad and person anyone would ever want. I wished I could have known someone like you in real life.
Maybe I was just slow but I was ridiculously happy when I finally realized the truth about just how similar Benji and Cal are. SO CLEVER.
This book really deals with the loss of someone close to you. A whole chunk of words I wished I had been able to convey to a person dear to me before she passed away. How Benji deals with his loss is so realistic and true, my heart clenched for him and myself. I laughed, I cried and I smiled when I was closing this book.
Unexpectedly, the religious part did't bother me much. I usually try to avoid books that dwell too much about it for various reasons, but the part of it in this book affected me in a positive way more than I would have had ever expected.
This book is one of those that you just don't know which shelves to put into. It has a healthy dosages of everything: tragedy, romance, drama, self discovery, thriller, religions and paranormal. I had my moments of being awestruck just for its beautiful and totally appropriate writing in between my bouts of crying where I just wanted everything to stop.
Sometimes I float along the river
For its surface I am bound
And there are times stones done fill my pockets
And it's into this river I drown
Oh how true. Sigh.
Benji. I love you. I totally get and feel you. You are so strong, so angry and desperate, so impossibly human that I ache for you.
Cal. You are just the sweetest thing ever. ever. ever.
Big Eddie. Only the most perfect dad and person anyone would ever want. I wished I could have known someone like you in real life.
Maybe I was just slow but I was ridiculously happy when I finally realized the truth about just how similar Benji and Cal are. SO CLEVER.
This book really deals with the loss of someone close to you. A whole chunk of words I wished I had been able to convey to a person dear to me before she passed away. How Benji deals with his loss is so realistic and true, my heart clenched for him and myself. I laughed, I cried and I smiled when I was closing this book.
Unexpectedly, the religious part did't bother me much. I usually try to avoid books that dwell too much about it for various reasons, but the part of it in this book affected me in a positive way more than I would have had ever expected.
Wow. I'm not sure what I want to say about this book. I'll start off by acknowledging that T.J. Klune is one of my favorite authors. His stories are filled with emotion, heart, acceptance, kindness, relatable and believable characters, and so much more. There is always at least one thing in each of his books that really touches my heart and soul. For this book, I couldn't stop thinking about Benji's relationship with his father, which is at the core of this beautifully written book. I envy this relationship. His father accepted him when he came out as gay and loved him unconditionally; something many queer kids never get. As a gay man, I wish I had the same relationship with my father. I wish I could say that my father has never spoken words that have damaged my heart. Unfortunately, not all parents are like Big Eddie. This is why books about acceptance and equality are so important. This is why it is so important for kids to be able to speak their truth without fear of ridicule and persecution. We need titles like Into This River I Drown and so many other books that celebrate the equality of every human being. We need more authors like T.J. Klune that are willing to speak out against those that are wanting to erase and harm other people.
This is an emotional ride, and I highly recommend it.
This is an emotional ride, and I highly recommend it.
slow-paced