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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
The story had me wrapped from the very beginning. Engaging, somewhat suspenseful, dramatic, and captivating describe this novel best. The two main characters lacked depth (a requirement to earn five stars for me) and I still rated it four stars which is a testament to how the story drew me in.
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
See. There is soft light. There are small mercies.Ah, my favourite genre: people fucking up; love thy neighbour type of books. This was heartwarming and wrenched out a couple of tears. Story is pretty simple: Tallie is the only one to stop her car when she sees Emmett on a bridge, about to jump. One altruistic moment leads to a weekend together that changes both their perspectives on shit they carry around with them. Needless to say, I loved this (with the slight caviat of catfish-y behaviour on Emmett's part when he decides it's okay to write Tallie's ex-husband while pretending to be her to potentially bring some closure EVEN THOUGH she was clearly doing fine in that department on her own. It was sort of glossed over at the end, and while it fit in the context and with Tallie's character, it didn't sit right with me, personally.)
SPOILERS:
LOVED the whole vibe. It was very Maniac (underrated Netflix gem), or even more so Russian Doll. Two people are connected by fate and help eachother out by just being there. Tallie is A black therapist, which certainly helps her deal with Emmett's situation, but she's also a loving nerd and has a family that embraces Emmett instantly, showing him that love is waiting for him.
Loved Emmett. He wasn't your stereotypical broody or stand-offish suicidal man. He let his emotions shine through, his moods flickered between casual banter, to anger, to actual crying. Crying is rarely a thing for guys in books, unless it's so emphasis weakness, but here it was just raw emotion. His back story (wife killed herself with the kid in the house) , while having some predictable (and tiring) elements (really going for the 'psycho' wife trope?), is also complicated by him being biracial and growing up in a white rural town (and actually ending up in prison for it???).
Also loved that the story didn't end with them together. Their situation was messy, they both lied to varying degrees and for different reasons. They had chemistry, but Rye/Emmett needed time to heal, same as Tallie needed time to move on, finally reconnect with her old flame, Nico. The ending was everything I needed it to be.
Like I said, I'm a sucker for these type of stories and I loved this. A LOT.
CN Death, suicide, PTSD
I wanted to like this more than I did. I found the protagonist unlikeable and pretentious. I also disliked all the faith-based bits. Had I known the book had a religious undercurrent I would’ve selected something else. The book was entertaining and covered an important topic pretty well so three stars for me.
This was a pretty good book. I was totally involved and interested for a majority of it, but slightly disappointed in the ending. It seemed rush and too easily wrapped up without the full closure I wanted.
I would def recommend this for others, but will say it is heavy.
I would def recommend this for others, but will say it is heavy.
although it was a slow start, once I learned more about the characters and their backgrounds, i fell in love with Emmett and Tallie.
I do wish the ending would’ve been different because it was slightly anticlimactic, but overall, I enjoyed this and will probably reread in the future!
I do wish the ending would’ve been different because it was slightly anticlimactic, but overall, I enjoyed this and will probably reread in the future!
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
not gonna lie i wasn’t totally vibing with this book until i hit the 200-page mark.
i read too much of the descriptions before actually reading this book so i was expecting the book to go a certain way but it didn’t. i feel like i would like this book a lot more if i didn’t read any descriptions.
once i reached the 200 page mark, i couldn’t put the book down though. really heartwarming story WITH A TWIST.
i read too much of the descriptions before actually reading this book so i was expecting the book to go a certain way but it didn’t. i feel like i would like this book a lot more if i didn’t read any descriptions.
once i reached the 200 page mark, i couldn’t put the book down though. really heartwarming story WITH A TWIST.
Oh brother, strap in. (DNF with literally 40 pages to go, BECAUSE the galley was printed incorrectly for literally 20 pages, my goodness).
I originally was told this was a delightful book from my friends who had BOTM, so I requested it from the library with the multiple rave reviews. After requesting the book from the library, I finally got around to reading it on my third check-out. And — while third time is usually a charm — this was definitely not the case here.
The book starts off with an interesting premise — a therapist sees a man on a bridge about to jump in the pouring rain. Yet, the cliches tumble out on each page at a rapid pace from there on out. Neither of the main characters is likable or interesting, even with the *mystery* that we keep being pulled toward (which turns out to be not that great!). Then, the language and the descriptions over the course of the book become more and more robotic — it was like reading a book that a robot had made after compiling all of the cliches from Gilmore Girls, The Office, and every romcom imaginable into a nonsensical mess.
Truly disappointed that I wasted time reading this, and that it was a BOTM book! My goodness. Read something better, please, for the love of all good things.
I originally was told this was a delightful book from my friends who had BOTM, so I requested it from the library with the multiple rave reviews. After requesting the book from the library, I finally got around to reading it on my third check-out. And — while third time is usually a charm — this was definitely not the case here.
The book starts off with an interesting premise — a therapist sees a man on a bridge about to jump in the pouring rain. Yet, the cliches tumble out on each page at a rapid pace from there on out. Neither of the main characters is likable or interesting, even with the *mystery* that we keep being pulled toward (which turns out to be not that great!). Then, the language and the descriptions over the course of the book become more and more robotic — it was like reading a book that a robot had made after compiling all of the cliches from Gilmore Girls, The Office, and every romcom imaginable into a nonsensical mess.
Truly disappointed that I wasted time reading this, and that it was a BOTM book! My goodness. Read something better, please, for the love of all good things.