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passionatereader78's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
Beautiful story of a father and daughter grieving the one person they never thought they would loss. Greta is a star! She loves her dream job, but it's not the same since she lost her favorite person in the world. She decides to go on a cruise to support her father. Jennifer did a great job telling this beautiful story of misunderstandings and miscommunications.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Death of parent
Father/daughter relationship, grief, cruise, Alaska, Iceberg, husband's grief, daughter's grief, musician, Indie Starchasingpages1's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Grief, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Infidelity
marisol1990's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
kelly_e's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
Title: The Unsinkable Greta James
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: March 1, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Light • Touching • Refreshing
📖 S Y N O P S I S
In the wake of her mother's death, wracked with grief, Greta has a breakdown on stage during a performance, one that goes viral and leads to her refusing to play again. With her career in jeopardy, her brother convinces her to accompany their father on an Alaskan cruise her parents had booked to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary. Greta and her father don't exactly see eye to eye, and this could be the chance to heal old wounds.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I was initially drawn to the distinct cover, and after reading the synopsis, was intrigued by the grief aspect. I went into it with the expectation that it'd be a highly emotional read, and it really wasn't.
What I like:
• Alaskan setting. The vivid imagery of Alaska and Glacier Bay really brought the natural beauty to life. I felt as though it was the ideal location to choose in order to mirror the plotline of grief. The cruise setting was something I liked in general.
• exploration of grief. One of the things this novel does really well is explore the concept of grief. It takes on a heavy topic is a lighthearted way that works. It offers various perspectives, demonstrating how grief journeys are different for each person, and how each must move through in their own manner.
• the father/daughter relationship. The tension. The healing. The relationship itself. I wish more books focused on the father/daughter relationship.
What I didn't like:
• the father/daughter relationship. I wanted so much more of this part of the book, and wish it had been the main focus.
• the romance. The relationship between Greta and Ben felt unrealistic, surface level, and wholly un unfinished. I'd have preferred if this portion of the book had been left out completely. It just didn't feel necessary and became the main plotline, which disappointed me.
• lack of depth. Aside from Greta, I didn't get to know the characters as much as I would have liked. I wanted more background, more communication, more of her mother. I feel there was so potential and the story just didn't go that way.
The Unsinkable Greta James is a solid exploration of grief, family and healing. It just wasn't everything I wanted it to be. I understand why it was such a hit in 2022, and still recommend it to readers.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• anyone in need of break from heavier plots
• readers who enjoyed The Float Plan and/or One Italian Summer
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Maybe the point isn't always to make things last. Maybe it's just to make them count."
"It’s a particularly strange kind of loss, when something you don’t think you even want gets taken away from you."
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: March 1, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Light • Touching • Refreshing
📖 S Y N O P S I S
In the wake of her mother's death, wracked with grief, Greta has a breakdown on stage during a performance, one that goes viral and leads to her refusing to play again. With her career in jeopardy, her brother convinces her to accompany their father on an Alaskan cruise her parents had booked to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary. Greta and her father don't exactly see eye to eye, and this could be the chance to heal old wounds.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I was initially drawn to the distinct cover, and after reading the synopsis, was intrigued by the grief aspect. I went into it with the expectation that it'd be a highly emotional read, and it really wasn't.
What I like:
• Alaskan setting. The vivid imagery of Alaska and Glacier Bay really brought the natural beauty to life. I felt as though it was the ideal location to choose in order to mirror the plotline of grief. The cruise setting was something I liked in general.
• exploration of grief. One of the things this novel does really well is explore the concept of grief. It takes on a heavy topic is a lighthearted way that works. It offers various perspectives, demonstrating how grief journeys are different for each person, and how each must move through in their own manner.
• the father/daughter relationship. The tension. The healing. The relationship itself. I wish more books focused on the father/daughter relationship.
What I didn't like:
• the father/daughter relationship. I wanted so much more of this part of the book, and wish it had been the main focus.
• the romance. The relationship between Greta and Ben felt unrealistic, surface level, and wholly un unfinished. I'd have preferred if this portion of the book had been left out completely. It just didn't feel necessary and became the main plotline, which disappointed me.
• lack of depth. Aside from Greta, I didn't get to know the characters as much as I would have liked. I wanted more background, more communication, more of her mother. I feel there was so potential and the story just didn't go that way.
The Unsinkable Greta James is a solid exploration of grief, family and healing. It just wasn't everything I wanted it to be. I understand why it was such a hit in 2022, and still recommend it to readers.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• anyone in need of break from heavier plots
• readers who enjoyed The Float Plan and/or One Italian Summer
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Maybe the point isn't always to make things last. Maybe it's just to make them count."
"It’s a particularly strange kind of loss, when something you don’t think you even want gets taken away from you."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Alcohol, and Death of parent
Minor: Cursing
partner deathhenyouise's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
I think I was deceived by the summary of this book when I decided to start reading it. I went in thinking it would be about a father and daughter rebuilding their relationship but it focuses much more on Greta and her processing her grief. And that's great and all but why is Ben there? I think he's kind of a boring character and I would have liked to dive deeper into Greta and Conrad actually rebuilding their relationship.
I think Greta is a really cool character. I see a lot of myself in her so that's nice. All her development in the book is independent from Ben. Her interactions with Preeti respark her love of performing, the glacier excursion with Conrad explains where he is coming from emotionally, and then Ben leaves and that's when Greta and Conrad actually have time to talk. Ben is a barrier to her development!!
You know what, I think I just don't care for Ben.
I think Greta is a really cool character. I see a lot of myself in her so that's nice. All her development in the book is independent from Ben. Her interactions with Preeti respark her love of performing, the glacier excursion with Conrad explains where he is coming from emotionally, and then Ben leaves and that's when Greta and Conrad actually have time to talk. Ben is a barrier to her development!!
You know what, I think I just don't care for Ben.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic relationship
hannalizzy's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.25
I really enjoyed this book! I read Jennifer E Smith books in high school and loved them then, but this book felt like a more mature, new-adult story for the author now.
Ben, the love interest, is adorable. Kind, attentive, sweet, totally nerdy.
I felt a little let down in the ending as far as where the love story concludes. It left more to be desired, in my opinion.
Other than that, it was adorable. The characters are endearingly stubborn, and so clearly broken people trying to smile through their pain.
Ben, the love interest, is adorable. Kind, attentive, sweet, totally nerdy.
I felt a little let down in the ending as far as where the love story concludes. It left more to be desired, in my opinion.
Other than that, it was adorable. The characters are endearingly stubborn, and so clearly broken people trying to smile through their pain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, and Grief
lit_with_lauren's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
kari_f's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was preparing for a lot of aching sadness going into this book, knowing from the description that the protagonist’s mother has recently passed away. Don’t get me wrong, the sadness was there, but what I didn’t expect was how tender and heartwarming it would be as said protagonist works through her grief and tries to connect with the father she feels worlds apart from. I love a good family drama, and I could relate to many aspects of this book. I absolutely loved watching Greta and her dad work to try and see each other through the eyes of the woman they’re both grieving. Their entire relationship feels complicated, honest, raw, and authentic, and I couldn’t get enough of it!
While there is a romantic aspect of the book, I don’t feel that it overshadowed the title character’s search to rediscover her passion and to connect with her father. This book has so many plot events that could have become mushy and saccharine, making it more rom com than anything else, but I think the author kept the perfect amount of tension and focus to prevent that from happening! Instead we get to witness three very different people at their own crossroads, each one struggling with which direction to go as they figure out what moving forward will look like in their own lives.
All of this takes place in an absolutely stunning backdrop, with vibrant and atmospheric descriptions that allow the reader to feel as if they are actually witnessing the majesty of Alaska.
Sentimental and sweet, raw and emotional, this was a beautiful debut into the world of adult contemporary literature for this author who typically writes for younger audiences.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House for this advanced readers copy!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
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