vinreads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Jesus Christ. At first I thought everyone was being dumb when they said the book was a bad representation of AIDS. All I was seeing was period typical Seraphobia, and then I got to the part where one character equated an incestuous relationship with homosexuality. I should've stopped when the FMC started saying she was in love with her uncle, but foolishly, I continued on. Their whole family dynamic was fucked up. And you're telling me that after falling in love with her uncle, she fell in love with his gay widow? His gay widow who stalked her, encouraged her to drive at the age of 14, gave her cigarettes and alcohol, and made many allusions to them being in a relationship together? 

Her mother was fucked up, making her brother keep his lover in the basement so she wouldn't have to see him, her sister treated her like she and it was alluded to that she was not only suicidal but sleeping with her drama teacher, and her father was just there. 

And in the end, there's an unnecessary death and a monologue about how much she loved (was in love with) her uncle and also her uncles widow. 

Go get therapy girl!! In fact, send your whole damn family to therapy!! 

I do not understand now this book is so highly accoladed. 

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melodyseestrees's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-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

3.0

June's crush on her gay uncle, and later his boyfriend, was not handled super well. Every adult in her life pretended to not see it or treated it in a very "oh ho ho she'll grow out of it" way. This inappropriate crush on adult figures is a way neglected children reach out for attention. As June and her sister are left to their own devices during tax season you can really see where the susceptibility to substance abuse (alcohol and cigarettes) and need for adult attention comes from. This acceptance/ignorance of the crush gives the story an incest or 'attraction to minors' feel when it was June primarily reaching out for romantic attention and the adults around her redirecting her but not outright rejecting her.
There is a scene where she kisses an adult on the mouth or fantasizes about doing so.  June pretends Toby is her lover when she takes him from the hospital via taxi to her home, where he dies.

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atamano's review against another edition

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dark emotional medium-paced
  • 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

3.0


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