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meeklovestoread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I'd like to note that I didn't know this was a piece of translated fiction so maybe certain concepts that were supposed to be more prominent were lost in translation.
Okay, I'd like to say the first half was promising and then it just went "downhill" for me. Which is not to say the story was bad, but I just felt like it could've been more emotional, more impactful, more promising.
The friendship between Yunjae and Gon felt so lackluster to me which renders Yunjae's gesture towards Gon idiotic to me
Also, Dora's characterization also felt lackluster to me as well. I understand her purpose but in my opinion, her presence was very much so unimpactful and didn't bring much to the story at all. Honestly, because I've consumed a decent amount of ya coming of age stories, I honestly thought there was going to be something between Gon and Yunjae. It's fine that there wasn't, but I was just expecting more.
The way Yunjae introduced Gon and Dora I thought they were going to impact the main character in a life-altering way and it was going to be this epic, emotional story about the binds of friendship and family and illness and sadly it all just fell so flat for me. And the ending. I hate reusing adjectives, but again, lackluster and felt kinda like a cop-out. And felt like a forced "HEA".
I know I keep harping on about my qualms about this book, but it honestly wasn't a bad book by any stretch of the phrase. I really enjoyed learning about alexithymia and the way the main character thinks and views things. It was nice to get a glimpse into another type of human experience that I didn't even know existed so learning about Yunjae and his struggles was nice. And getting to witness the relationship between his mother and his grandmother and their past lives. As well as Yunjae's relationship with Dr. Shim.
Overall, again this is not a bad book. It has so many 4 and 5 stars ratings. It sadly just didn't hit for me and that's okay!
Graphic: Mental illness, Death, Bullying, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Violence and Cursing
Minor: Suicide, Medical content, Child death, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Blood
lotoblanco's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical content, Death, Murder, Physical abuse, Blood, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Violence
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Addiction
naa_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Bullying, Animal cruelty, Violence, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, Child abuse, and Abandonment
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Suicidal thoughts
lilmissoddity's review against another edition
2.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Ableism, Grief, Bullying, Kidnapping, Violence, Death of parent, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Blood, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
dominiq_ec's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Violence, Toxic friendship, Kidnapping, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Bullying, Death, Blood, Body horror, and Grief
user_asha's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Medical content, Death of parent, and Kidnapping
mykes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, Blood, Body horror, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Torture, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Death, Gore, Violence, Mental illness, and Physical abuse
arieslofi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Violence, Animal cruelty, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Animal death, Ableism, and Kidnapping
Minor: Abandonment and Trafficking
adriaxlife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Blood, Bullying, Chronic illness, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Violence, and Death
Minor: Hate crime, Kidnapping, and Grief
leahrosiee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Mental illness, Bullying, Death, Cursing, Blood, Grief, Medical content, and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Kidnapping and Mass/school shootings