Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan

28 reviews

dianaschmidty's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• 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? It's complicated

4.0

Wow, this was a tough, but good book. Kennedy Ryan’s writing is amazing at making you experience what the characters are feeling, both good and bad.

Let’s start off with the good feelings. I absolutely love August West! He was basically exactly what Iris needed exactly when she needed him. They were perfect together, once they were given their chance. I love how the ending talked about soulmates, because they are two characters that make me believe in that idea too. I also loved Iris, especially her character growth in the wake of the suffering she endured.

While this book has a lot of triggering content, I think Kennedy Ryan handled it very well. She brought to life the cruelty in this world, but also offered hope in the wake of that cruelty.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Torture, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Toxic relationship, Classism, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Blood, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Misogyny, Confinement, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infidelity, Stalking, Grief, and Police brutality

Minor: Death of parent, Abortion, and Miscarriage

cydthekid15's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

• 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

This book put me through a wave of emotions and really changed my perspective on domestic abuse in relationships. This is a hard book to swallow so I don’t recommend it for all but if you do want to read it you won’t regret it. Iris and August will hold a special place in my heart.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Mental illness

hannibanani29's review

dark emotional tense slow-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent, Cursing, Blood, Confinement, Gaslighting, Gore, Body horror, Pregnancy, Infidelity, and Grief

Minor: Abortion, Vomit, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Miscarriage, Murder, Child abuse, Suicide, Racism, Medical content, and Mental illness

readwithinthespines's review against another edition

emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

brie_is_reading's review

challenging emotional reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, Rape, Sexual violence, Mental illness, and Physical abuse

orangeaiya's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• 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

4.0

The main character grew on me for sure. Very tough read due to the violence both occurring and referenced. Happy ending.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Rape, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Violence

anaya_reads's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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

When I tell you I have absolutely no issues with this book. It’s literally amazing. Iris’ story is truly inspiring and their love is a live that transcends off paper. August is S tier and is now the standard for all men. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Rape, Gaslighting, Grief, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, and Pregnancy

jonezzzing's review

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Blood, Bullying, Death, Stalking, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Grief and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit and Abandonment

coligmueller's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Medical content, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Vomit, and Gaslighting

now_booking's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I’m torn about how I feel about this one. I think the themes and the characterization of Iris as a heroine that challenges what domestic abuse commonly looks like are eminently important… but I had niggling issues that I’m not yet quite sure how I feel about.

The premise is that August and Iris meet in a bar right before August’s professional basketball career takes off, but the timing is all wrong. Iris is in a relationship with August’s longtime nemesis, Caleb, and he’s signed for a team on the other side of the country. Yet the emotional connection between them is unbreakable as fate and the small world of professional basketball keep bringing them together. While August pines for Iris from a distance, he’s unaware of the real life demons she’s battling.

This is a really heavy book, a sad, viscerally painful, brutal and violent one. I think overall, the author did justice to the theme of domestic violence and fulfilled what she wrote in her preface in the book, of wanting to tell another story of staying in an abusive relationship. More or less all of the physical and sexual violence happens on page in the most brutal way- not once, but repeatedly. In many ways I’m undecided about how I feel about that portrayal. In a sense, it makes the intimate scenes later in the book almost healing in contrast. But in a sense, it in some ways felt perhaps a little gratuitous. I also had a few issues with the pacing of the book. It felt a little to me unbalanced in setting up Iris’s battle in such a detailed way and then rushing her healing and HEA in what felt a little less of a painstaking way. It doesn’t mean I found her healing journey unrealistic, I think it could be plausible. But it at times felt a little skim-y and glossed over. Some of the underlying issues and betrayals within Iris’s family for example even up to the end were kind of touched on but never truly explored. I think in that sense, this could have felt more together. There was also a part where early on, there was a passing glorification of a mixed heritage being a source of attraction that threw me off a bit and sort of unexplored discourse about colourism between Iris and Lotus but these are just minor things that grated at me a bit but did not affect my overall feeling about the importance of this book.

That said, I thought what was most fantastic was the theme of this book and the author taking on this topic and telling it in a different way and within the high profile world of professional men’s sports where (mostly female) partners of athletes are harshly judged for not toeing the line. Beyond that, it is a great, reflective book that challenges everyone who thinks they know exactly what they would do in an abusive situation- a book that greys out decisions that seems like they would be black and white. Of course the highest of trigger warnings for anyone who has experienced abuse especially intimate partner violence- there is a lot of on-page content. Overall, I liked this book. This is I believe my first book by this author and I would read more. I’m on to the next one in the series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Bullying, Blood, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Torture, Grief, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Abortion and Panic attacks/disorders