Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - The Guncle

I felt like this book was a little overhyped. I thought it was cute and had some poignant moments which were very sweet. I found the main character to be a bit pretentious and his gayness was over-exaggerated to make the story more flamboyant and colorful. The character seemed more a caricature of what it means to be a gay, white man in Hollywood/Palm Springs and that felt like an uncomfortable juxtaposition against the visceral way grief and loss was described in this novel.

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mommarex1221's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

4.5 🍸

I absolutely adored this book, and the narration by the author was fabulous.
Mostly hilarious, a little sad and a little scandalous. I was waiting for tears to be triggered, but they never were. That's alright, I still felt the story dealt with grief very well. The children were a highlight, especially on audio book. As a mother of a 6 year old, I was immediately drawn to Grant. The ending is... chef's kiss. I need to see this as a limited series!

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seawarrior's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective 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? Yes

4.0

The Guncle is a story that successfully balances humor with tragedy by exploring our protagonist's unresolved grief as he works to understand himself in order to understand his grieving niece and nephew. Despite these tough themes, the novel is ultimately a lighthearted one, characterized by a sunshine-y, idyllic tone. Patrick is a flawed protagonist, and one desperately out of touch with the world, yet he did endear himself to me as the book went on and we learned more about why he treats life as a stage with himself in the starring role. I appreciated the themes of how trauma warps ourselves until it warps our relationships with our families, and how we have a responsibility to be kind to ourselves so that we may be kinder to the next generation. Rowley was great at writing expanded descriptions of locations and emotions, and in supplying a joke whenever possible. While this story may feel unrelatable to many because of Patrick's wealth, I would still recommend it to other readers looking for more gay narratives.

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maregred's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.0

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karolinaz's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

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amandalorianxo's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

Laughed.Cried.Reflected.Hopeful.Genuinely funny. I felt a tidal wave of emotions reading this book and it was one of the best ones to read during Spring Break. Patrick taught me a lot within these pages and it truly goes to show that when someone is amazing at their craft, the characters speak for themselves. I feel like mostly everyone has read this already but it goes beyond family member watching their niece and nephew for over three months. We learn about communicating, being vulnerable, sexuality/identities, family dynamics… and a lot more.

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revengesrose's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.25

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martachbc's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective 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

4.5

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