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savreads28's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Cursing, Medical trauma, Blood, Death, Violence, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Bullying, Outing, Hate crime, Lesbophobia, Murder, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Toxic relationship
theythemreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Homophobia
The main characters father dies in a car crash at the beginning of the book. That scene is then speculated and written about in detail. There are lots of scenes of the main character watch others die too in different ways. Do not read if you are struggling with grief, I still found it disturbing and I haven't experienced anything described.siobhanwisener's review
4.0
An enjoyable read, very interesting plot twists and best part was obviously Sydneys gay panic moments with June
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Car accident, and Death
Moderate: Grief and Mental illness
mjwilliamson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
If I knew what I was in for, I don’t think I would have started this book, but I enjoyed it nevertheless. I would think very carefully about who I recommend it to. Trigger warnings most definitely apply.
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Outing, Gaslighting, Car accident, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Stalking, and Mental illness
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Alcohol, Abandonment, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Sexual assault
faythfarrar's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.5
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Outing, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Rape
cvbattum's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
First of all, I am a huge fan of Savannah's writing style, which I think is well-suited to the exploration of emotion this book is. Specifically, the emotion of grief, from the perspective of an already hurting seventeen year old girl. The descriptions of feelings are intense, but also beautiful, and they're really gripping.
What's less than perfect about it, is the lack of depth to the mystery of the plot, as well as the lack of character depth. Both of these are forgivable when looked at the story as an exploration of grief and romance, but not so much when looked at it from the perspective of a thriller. The two central mysteries could be solved quite quickly, and I wasn't surprised for the story to take the turns that it did. I found this to be forgivable, because there was still enough suspense that made me unable to put it away, and in the end I didn't feel like the plot was the most important part of the book; it merely served as a means to explore Sydney's grief.
Even though the characters (especially narrator and protagonist Sydney) have great and believable emotional depth, their more superficial traits were almost not explored at all. At the end of the book, I still had no idea what any the characters like to do, what their hobbies or favorite things are, what their ambitions or interests are, etc. If it's not directly relevant to either the mystery or the emotions, it's not there. I think I'd have liked to see a little more of that.
What I absolutely loved about the book are the central themes of loss and ending, and how all-encompassing those can be to our lives. The romance and character relations were well-written and believable, uplifting and heartbreaking. Like I mentioned earlier, Savannah Brown is really good at writing about feelings and emotions, and manages to make you feel like you're reading your own internal monologue, even to feelings you've never experienced. The book has a very dark setting and theme, but lights up so much in sweet moments that leave a warm fuzzy feeling.
In conclusion: It's a great book for younger people (though not necessarily 17yo girls only; I'm 23M), who are always stuck in their own heads a bit too much, and who like flowy, occasionally poetic prose. People of any age, who have experiences of grief/death, loneliness, unrequited (queer) romance or sexual/domestic abuse might find this book difficult to read, but might also find it cathartic to read about someone else's unfiltered and raw experience, and Spoilerfeel better after the positive ending. Highly recommended!
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, and Homophobia
Moderate: Death of parent and Death
anniereads221's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Car accident, Violence, Alcohol, Homophobia, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Lesbophobia, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
sisters26's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Il aborde aussi des sujets importants
On y retrouve aussi de la représentation LGBTQ+ 🏳️🌈, le main character étant lesbienne.
Moderate: Car accident, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse
idunnoknow's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Car accident, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
bookishbea's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Death of parent, Bullying, Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Homophobia