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tseth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Minor: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Grief, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
lkbooks'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
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infidelity and Misogyny
aeriecircus'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
4.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Terminal illness, and Grief
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Death of parent
bluejay21'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: Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Infidelity
gcldsteins's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death and Grief
Minor: Infidelity and Death of parent
beautifulpaxielreads'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: Child death, Death, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Slavery and Dementia
stephbakerbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
That being said, I don't think this book is for everyone. There's a lot of descriptive writing and "flowery" language, the plot moves very slowly, the omniscient POV bounces from person to person—if that's not your thing, you'll probably get annoyed and frustrated with this story. But I found myself captivated by the language and fully immersed into the setting the author was describing. From the beginning, you know where this story is going, you know what's going to happen, there are no surprises, and yet...you are right there with this family, on the edge of your seat, waiting to see how they react, what they will say, how they will feel. I don't know what it was about this book that grabbed me so. If I described the characters to you, none of them would be unique; maybe the most interesting thing about them is that the name William Shakespeare never appears in the story, as if, though he is the most famous person of his family, he takes a backseat here to the rest of them, so their emotions and actions can carry more weight. And yet, for the last half of this book, I couldn't put it down.
I'm not going to tell you to read it because, like I said above, I don't think it's for everyone. But if you're fascinated by the Shakespeare family, if you like being grabbed by a mysterious element in a book, if any of the above appealed to you, if you're also obsessed by this cover—don't hesitate to read this book.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, and Grief
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Infidelity and Sexual content
rynicolereads'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
4.25
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Child abuse and Physical abuse
Minor: Infidelity
oliviafaye's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Terminal illness, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
bodiesinbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child death and Pregnancy
Moderate: Terminal illness and Grief
Minor: Infidelity and Sexual content
Child birth