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Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
4 reviews
smartcookiesca's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Car accident, and Death of parent
Moderate: Toxic friendship
Minor: Biphobia, Cancer, Child death, Homophobia, Terminal illness, and Violence
alexisgarcia's review
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Emezi is one of the best writers I have read from. they write such full characters. the characters have flaws but can also be so loveable. while i could point out many “flaws” in this book, it doesn’t matter. i loved it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Alcohol
discarded_dust_jacket's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
4.25
I absolutely love Emezi’s writing style. Their descriptions of the home and its picturesque island setting (the food!!) is so refreshingly indulgent without weighing down the narrative. This book was easy to devour really quickly; there were no lulls that dragged the pacing or unnecessary exposition that disrupted the flow. I also really appreciated the way that it addresses grief, especially in terms of how Feyi explores reconciling it with her renewed sexuality and capacity for love.
My only complaint is the lack of a truly believable progression in the relationship between Feyi and Alim. It’s understandable that the bulk of their encounters while she’s staying in his home are framed within their individual struggles to repress their attraction to one another. I get that that was done intentionally, and that tension belongs there. But it didn’t feel like an entirely believable jump from the few sexually-charged moments and brief, heartfelt conversations they share to the sudden declaration of I’m-willing-to-blow-up-my-life-for-you-level devotion. I think there was enough room in the story for more substance in between to draw out that tension and intensify it incrementally in a way that would’ve felt more natural. This isn’t a dealbreaker for me; I still thoroughly enjoyed this book.
[And for the record, I have zero problems with the “dad” thing. I’m actually surprised people are literally aghast—reviewing this book harshly solely because of the fact that Feyi is being messy for choosing Alim when… 1) the whoops-I’m-attracted-to-your-father aspect is explicitly addressed on the inside cover summary; why are we shocked? and 2) that’s kind of the point! Feyi herself struggles with her guilt over the messiness of the whole situation. That’s the focal nature of the entire conflict of the story.]
My only complaint is the lack of a truly believable progression in the relationship between Feyi and Alim. It’s understandable that the bulk of their encounters while she’s staying in his home are framed within their individual struggles to repress their attraction to one another. I get that that was done intentionally, and that tension belongs there. But it didn’t feel like an entirely believable jump from the few sexually-charged moments and brief, heartfelt conversations they share to the sudden declaration of I’m-willing-to-blow-up-my-life-for-you-level devotion. I think there was enough room in the story for more substance in between to draw out that tension and intensify it incrementally in a way that would’ve felt more natural. This isn’t a dealbreaker for me; I still thoroughly enjoyed this book.
[And for the record, I have zero problems with the “dad” thing. I’m actually surprised people are literally aghast—reviewing this book harshly solely because of the fact that Feyi is being messy for choosing Alim when… 1) the whoops-I’m-attracted-to-your-father aspect is explicitly addressed on the inside cover summary; why are we shocked? and 2) that’s kind of the point! Feyi herself struggles with her guilt over the messiness of the whole situation. That’s the focal nature of the entire conflict of the story.]
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Grief, and Car accident
Minor: Child death and Terminal illness
queenofthefae's review
challenging
emotional
tense
- 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 did really enjoy this book, and probably would’ve absolutely loved it if not for the initial discomfort I felt with the premise of the main conflict — that Feyi falls in love with and decides ultimately to pursue a relationship with the father of the man she’s already involved with. I don’t really have a problem with age-gap romances, but that particular vein of relationship dynamic really squicked me out for some reason, to the point where I almost put the book down. I could see by about halfway where the plot was headed, but I think it must have been more the anticipation of Feyi crossing into *something* with Alim than anything else, because for the last third or so of the book once they’d crossed that line, so to speak, I was much more okay with it. I still didn’t love that dynamic situation, but not so badly I wanted to stop reading. Overall, I really did enjoy the book, and aside from that one aspect, really don’t have anything negative to say.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Injury/Injury detail