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kmrose's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I read an ARC of this. I honestly didn’t love it. The writing was not great and I kept hoping both characters would come to some sort of realization and try to find help, but neither did and it wasn’t even clear how it ended. I suppose that could be a realistic portrayal of young adults in a relationship but it was not for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Child abuse
juliaelman's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Physical abuse
jcxjab's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
i read this book in one day. i really related to a lot of the themes here. taylor has a good voice in her writing.
i only wish that at the portions where there was overlap it had been omitted to avoid redundancy.
i thought ash and maya were really well written characters. i still am wondering is ash the girl maya saw on the train ?
anyway, this was one of the most accurate representations of coming to terms with sexuality and experiencing life with anxiety surrounding it. i related to both maya and ash in the sense that, it’s so scary to confront your own issues while being concerned about someone else’s.
i was sad when i saw they just didn’t work but that happens when you’re young and can’t confront problems.
this would’ve been a 5 if some of the overlapping writing didn’t feel repetitive. cant wait to read what else taylor puts out next x
i only wish that at the portions where there was overlap it had been omitted to avoid redundancy.
i thought ash and maya were really well written characters. i still am wondering is ash the girl maya saw on the train ?
anyway, this was one of the most accurate representations of coming to terms with sexuality and experiencing life with anxiety surrounding it. i related to both maya and ash in the sense that, it’s so scary to confront your own issues while being concerned about someone else’s.
this would’ve been a 5 if some of the overlapping writing didn’t feel repetitive. cant wait to read what else taylor puts out next x
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Lesbophobia
gbrolsma16's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
A beautiful coming of age story that captures the way queer young adults can have a youthful, naive, and painful experience growing into who they are beyond high school years. A short but meaningful read that explores the importance of sharing how no one queer persons experience is the same, and the ways those differences can be healing and difficult when brought together. Not exactly tragic, definitely not a fairy tale. Just a realistic story, and in many ways that’s so much better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Alcoholism
narzibenoucdel's review
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Entertaining enough to read through quickly and elicits enough emotion to feel anger, but otherwise mediocre in every way that matters. The ending is perplexingly bad and comes completely out of left field. An extremely amateur work overall that left one feeling salty and wondering why it was published in the first place.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, and Alcohol
gracewiley's review
sad
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Homophobia
vivelelivre's review
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
mothie_girlie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
As always thank you to publishers and Netgalley for a free arc in exchange for an honest review. Please check TW!!
This review contains spoilers, please avoid parenthesis and asterisks if you want to avoid spoilers!!
This book gave me all the feels! I loved the relationship between Aisling and Maya and was rooting so hard for them to get together. The way their story is so real, especially for children of religiously abusive parents. The expression of trauma and grief and how it shows up in even the most wonderful of relationships if you don't take the time to heal was absolutely gorgeous. While not everything was handled the way I wish it would <spoiler >getting absolutely wasted in front of someone that has experienced abuse from an alcoholic is an awful thing for a person to do, partner or otherwise>/spoiler >
I did thoroughly enjoy this book, I would have absolutely rated it higher if it was properly handled. I will absolutely be looking forward to more from Clementine Taylor!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry
jazzyjbox's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Aisling and Maya meet at college in Edinburgh and instantly feel a connection. However, Aisling is dealing with her abusive alcoholic mother, and Maya is trying to come to terms with her sexuality. But maybe they can work through things together.
The writing was overall lovely. I liked the way things were framed and the journey Aisling had to go on. But the relationship felt like a lot was told instead of shown, and the ending was abrupt and confusing. The last two chapters were set up in a way where you couldn't tell which POV it was from, and that was frustrating. It does feel like a realistic representation of a college relationship.
The writing was overall lovely. I liked the way things were framed and the journey Aisling had to go on. But the relationship felt like a lot was told instead of shown, and the ending was abrupt and confusing. The last two chapters were set up in a way where you couldn't tell which POV it was from, and that was frustrating. It does feel like a realistic representation of a college relationship.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, and Alcoholism
thecottoncandyunicorn's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.25
This is what I imagine a Sally Rooney novel would be like if I actually liked Sally Rooney. Seriously though, I really liked this book. It was beautifully written. The ending twist came a bit out of nowhere, but it in no way ruined the book for me. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, and Homophobia