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mgcalder's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Alcohol
Moderate: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
lunep'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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Dementia, and Gaslighting
Minor: Cursing, Self harm, Sexual content, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic
merrynthomas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Moderate: Death and Grief
Minor: Mental illness, Car accident, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic
itisallmydoing's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death, Car accident, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Mental illness, Miscarriage, Self harm, Dementia, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
amandaweis05's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
nyree42's review against another edition
3.5
Or is he?
You might get immersed in the tale, hoping it's a revenge fantasy, waiting to cackle with glee once the philanderer gets caught in one room with all the women, who then realize exactly what he's been doing...
But wait...
At the last section of the book, suddenly the reader is thrown for a loop when they are shown that they were NOT reading the story they thought they were, nor is Joseph Carter the man they assumed that he was.
This is a character study about mysterious behaviour, miscommunication, erroneous assumptions and misunderstandings - all of which are incredibly annoying to deal with in real life while dating somebody. In this case, yes, it is primarily Joseph at fault for not explaining himself clearly, but the reader will be shown "why" he is that way so that they will have more sympathy. (You'll understand if you read it.)
Don't read if you don't like those tropes - but if you tolerate them, I promise that you will be treated to the happily-ever-after ending you'd hope for in a romance.
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
ajourneythroughpages's review against another edition
4.25
Moderate: Death and Dementia
Minor: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Stalking, and Sexual harassment
imds's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
megelizabeth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
This is a difficult book for me to review, as it essentially consists of three intertwined storylines and two of them I adored but one I absolutely couldn't stand. I did largely work out where the overarching plot was going, but that didn't bother me, as I still thought it was so ambitious and cleverly-done, and also because there was so much I loved in Jane's and Siobhan's storylines; there are brilliantly important conversations, excellent building of tension, relationships that feel agonisingly real, and climaxes that shattered my heart and then went some way to putting it back together.
I found Miranda annoying and difficult to connect to all the way through (and you're clearly supposed to root for all three protagonists), but I'd feel more forgiving because of how much I was drawn into everything else that was happening if it wasn't for the way Miranda's last chapter ended. I just cannot fathom how the author possibly thought what happened could be seen as anything other than downright insensitive, let alone supposedly 'romantic'.
So, yeah, very mixed feelings on this one. It definitely had a huge impact on me, and I'd still say I'm glad I read it because it has an extremely intriguing set-up and because I loved Jane's and Siobhan's characters so much; it just could have been so much better with an equally compelling third protagonist and a far less frustrating end to her story. I did, however, apparently unlike a lot of reviewers, really like Joseph for the most part, and I definitely found his character arc to be a super compelling one.
Graphic: Death and Mental illness
Moderate: Miscarriage and Self harm
Minor: Death of parent
bookishjae's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Dementia, Grief, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol