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Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'
The Heart Principle – L'ipotenusa dell'amore by Helen Hoang
166 reviews
rosegoes3's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Moderate: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
theespressoedition's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
One of the things that I find incredibly impressive is when an author can flawlessly mesh really heavy, challenging topics with humor and romance. That is a skill that I don't see very often if I'm perfectly honest, which is why so many of the romantic comedies I read are rated with only three stars. They're fine, they're cute, but they're not great.
Helen's writing is great.
Let's start with the main character. She's struggling with her music after going viral, which is something that feels very relatable. Living up to the standard that has been set for you can seem so daunting, so my heart immediately went out to Anna before even knowing much else about her.
Like most of the other books by Helen, there is autism representation and it is incredibly written. While her other books focus on individuals who already know about their diagnosis or happen to meet someone who is on the spectrum, Anna discovers that she is autistic mid-book. It's a different approach and it wrecked me. The way her family treats her, the way she wants to treat herself but doesn't really know how, and of course the way Quan treats her - it crashed down on me like a true wave of emotions.
In the midst of all of this, something truly traumatic happens in Anna's life. In order to touch on this, I'm going to add a spoiler warning because I feel like it's important for me to mention it but I don't want to ruin anything for anyone else.
There were so many moments where I wanted to scream at Anna to make a different choice. But I know that my screams mimicked the ones in her own mind. It was a really intense book to read, considering how light so much of it was.
Of course, I need to talk about the lightness and the romance aspect as well! Quan is a dream. Truly, he's an absolutely perfect book boyfriend and I loved him from the minute I "met" him on the page. His desire to meet Anna where she is because of his own "shortcomings" made him all the more wonderful. His insecurities made him feel realistic and he has his own challenges throughout the story too. I really enjoyed reading from his perspective (I love a dual POV in romance) because it gave me a better understanding of just why he was so lovable!
Gosh, I really feel like I could go on forever about this book. It was everything I hoped it would be and so much more. This is a book I'll want to pick up again and again.
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Suicidal thoughts
eicart_reads's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Death of parent
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
shuelace's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Ableism, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
haley_readmylips's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
pia_h's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Vomit
jengeraae's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Mental illness, and Grief
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
gteng's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Grief
travelthrupages's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Chronic illness, Infidelity, Sexual content, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
rrubin97's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicidal thoughts