Scan barcode
amandalorianxo's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I heard some rumbling and mumbling about people comparing this book to Evelyn Hugo? Why I thought ? What could these two books possibly have in common ? So I went for it and I am so happy I did. This is a lot better compared to Evelyn (in my opinion) The only similarities between the two ladies involve the theme of death but I think the way Dava handled it was managed better. It was thought out in more ways than one. This book also encompasses the issues of abandonment, adoption, interracial marriages, racism, and other complex family dynamics. Dava’s four children also have their own distinct personalities as well as the grandchildren. Diversity in characters and sexualities was a nice surprise. Dava is of Indian decent. Her children are a blend of her and her husband (who is not Indian.) Her eldest son is gay and we meet his husband & their children. Her youngest daughter is in a poly relationship with a married couple (although it’s revealed not to be a healthy one.) This takes you through a matter of days during the winter month of December as we realize Dava made an important decision and we are met with flashbacks & present day ideas of how everyone feels. A character driven novel that if you listen to the audio, you are welcomed to a short snippet of the song that Dava said was inspired by her !
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Death, and Grief
Minor: Alcohol, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
thenovelmaura's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I love a complicated matriarch and Dava Shastri delivered on that front! Her obsession with legacy and her devotion to her philanthropic mission made her an equal parts admirable and frustrating figure. It was fascinating to see her last days through the eyes of her large, messy family and understand the ripple effects of her decisions—both ones she made years ago and ones she made in the months leading up to her death. I also appreciated this look at medically-assisted death and how every member of the family processed her choice in their own way. The audiobook was read by a talented narrator and included a little clip of the song "Dava," which was a lovely and unexpected treat.
Personally, I didn't have a problem keeping track of the characters because I found their personalities to be very distinctive. But I agree with reviewers who point out that all of the other family members were shallowly developed in comparison to Dava. I also thought this book was longer than it needed to be, especially given the aforementioned critique. All in all, this was a strong debut and I'm looking forward to Ramisetti's next book!
Personally, I didn't have a problem keeping track of the characters because I found their personalities to be very distinctive. But I agree with reviewers who point out that all of the other family members were shallowly developed in comparison to Dava. I also thought this book was longer than it needed to be, especially given the aforementioned critique. All in all, this was a strong debut and I'm looking forward to Ramisetti's next book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Cancer, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism and Infidelity
Minor: Domestic abuse
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Classism, Racism, Infidelity, Pregnancy, and Cancer
marydith's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I think this was a very well-written book; I just didn't enjoy it. It's hard to enjoy a character-driven story when the characters are the main thing don't like about it. I'm just completely unable to feel any kind of sympathy or compassion for a billionaire, even a fictional one. I *do* love any discussion and awareness of assisted suicide, and I genuinely did love the premise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Terminal illness
caseythereader's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Death, Emotional abuse, Cancer, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Terminal illness, Cursing, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, and Sexual content
youshouldreadthisif's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Am I glad I read this? Yes. While there are POVs from other members of the family that provide insight into family dynamics through their eyes, this book is as good as it is because of how well Ramisetti constructed Dava's character. She's "unlikeable" and sometimes difficult to sympathize with; she's deeply ambitious to the point of fixation, dismissive of her children, bordering on narcissistic, obsessed with her legacy, controlling, incredibly demanding, and, frankly, unrepentant about all of that. (Though this begs the question of whether we'd call this character unlikeable if she were instead a he, doesn't it?) And that's exactly why I like her character so much. My favorite part was Dava's POV about Tom Buck - she makes, and keeps making, an incredibly selfish and potentially devastating decision. And while my romantic heart hated it, I also understood it. So don't read this book for the juicy secrets revealed; one of them's not all that shocking, anyway. Instead, read it for the incredibly complicated family matriarch and the insight into her choices and how they affected her family.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Suicide, and Death
Moderate: Infidelity
annastasia_will's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Cool concept but the execution fell a bit flat for me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
mishale1's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I generally rate a book with a star rating based on my own enjoyment level and not necessarily how well the book is written. Their my reviews after all. So, does this book deserve better than a 3 star rating? Probably to many people it does.
It don’t like sad books very often. I really don’t like books that are sad most of the time. And I also enjoy a book less when I don’t like the lead character.
Why did I read this book then? I didn’t realize how sad it would be. It sounded like an amusing concept.
Dava knows she’s dying. She’s incredibly famous and incredibly wealthy. She’s done a lot of good for the world. She has her death leaked to the press early so she can see what is said about her.
Dava seems to be expecting that everything said about her will be good, she’s most famous for her charitable work after all. She is completely blindsided with two huge secrets from her past also come out and threaten to overtake the good things written about her.
She thinks it’s unfair that people would focus on scandalous gossip when she’s done so much good. She thinks it’s sexist.
But let me tell you a bit about Dava.
She leaked the news of her death to the press before telling her own children she was dying. They didn’t even know she was sick.
Now the whole family has found out, despite her trying to hide it by secluding everyone in a cabin without technological devices.
She’s also planning to have a doctor do an assisted suicide procedure for her.
The secrets that come out about her in the press?
Her kids didn’t know them either.
Now the whole family is together, they just find out their mom will die before they leave the cabin, they’ve got their children there with them, and they have to deal with the big secrets their mom kept while also processing that she’s dying.
I made it through this book but it was really just incredibly sad the whole way through. It was well written but it wasn’t for me.
It don’t like sad books very often. I really don’t like books that are sad most of the time. And I also enjoy a book less when I don’t like the lead character.
Why did I read this book then? I didn’t realize how sad it would be. It sounded like an amusing concept.
Dava knows she’s dying. She’s incredibly famous and incredibly wealthy. She’s done a lot of good for the world. She has her death leaked to the press early so she can see what is said about her.
Dava seems to be expecting that everything said about her will be good, she’s most famous for her charitable work after all. She is completely blindsided with two huge secrets from her past also come out and threaten to overtake the good things written about her.
She thinks it’s unfair that people would focus on scandalous gossip when she’s done so much good. She thinks it’s sexist.
But let me tell you a bit about Dava.
She leaked the news of her death to the press before telling her own children she was dying. They didn’t even know she was sick.
Now the whole family has found out, despite her trying to hide it by secluding everyone in a cabin without technological devices.
She’s also planning to have a doctor do an assisted suicide procedure for her.
The secrets that come out about her in the press?
Her kids didn’t know them either.
Now the whole family is together, they just find out their mom will die before they leave the cabin, they’ve got their children there with them, and they have to deal with the big secrets their mom kept while also processing that she’s dying.
I made it through this book but it was really just incredibly sad the whole way through. It was well written but it wasn’t for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Death, Death of parent, and Infidelity
corinnereadsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
leahrosiee's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Infidelity, Cancer, Terminal illness, and Suicide
Moderate: Medical content
Minor: Pregnancy