Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Bellies by Nicola Dinan

21 reviews

drrooly's review

reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Death

Moderate: Transphobia

savvylit's review against another edition

emotional 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

Bellies is a tender - yet messy - literary love story. Love consistently endures in this novel, despite a myriad of challenges. And it's not only romantic love that endures in this story. Bellies has some of the sweetest and most genuine moments of platonic love that I have ever experienced in literature. I loved Ming and Tom's friends for their devotion and ease with one another. In many ways, Bellies is also an ode to chosen family.

As I read, Dinan's writing reminded me quite a bit of Sally Rooney's work. Like in Rooney's novels, the relationships in Bellies are complex, the characters are vulnerable, and they're all discovering who they are and who they want to be. If you're a Rooney fan, you really cannot miss Bellies.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Grief, and Dysphoria

joensign's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Dysphoria, Grief, and Transphobia

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Eating disorder, Sexual content, and Death

Minor: Drug use, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Car accident

serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

emotional 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

4.25

 Bellies is the story of a relationship that developed between Tom and Ming, two gay men, and the challenges it faced when Ming realised she was a woman and transitioned. I found this book to be tender, thoughtful and nuanced, with no villains and no cliched easy answers. Just two people who loved each other but struggled when the truth of who they both were no longer fitted together neatly. Beautifully done. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Dysphoria, and Grief

Moderate: Death and Car accident

hi_saac's review

emotional hopeful 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity

Moderate: Grief

Minor: Death, Eating disorder, and Car accident

flashandoutbreak's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Grief, Alcohol, Mental illness, Car accident, Death, Eating disorder, Infidelity, and Dysphoria

sadpear's review

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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

5.0

A gorgeously built, resonant work that speaks to the fears and anxieties about love and belonging and friendship, as well as joy of it. Wonderfully queer and modern. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Dysphoria, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death

Minor: Eating disorder

evfav's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I was completely engrossed in this book, I’ve never finished anything so quickly because I was always wanting to pick it up and every time I did I got lost in it’s pages for hours at a time. This story broke my heart in all the ways I expected and some more that I didn’t. Every character revealed vulnerability and depth and felt so real. The way Tom and Ming’s relationship developed felt so natural and warmed and broke my heart. This was an amazing story about self discovery, learning to love yourself, and the hardships of growing into a chaotic world, but it was always grounded in the important lasting friendships. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Car accident, Dysphoria, Grief, Transphobia, Sexual content, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, and Death of parent

Minor: Terminal illness

lena_and_her_books's review against another edition

emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Sexual content

Moderate: Vomit, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Car accident and Death

frmeden's review

emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Homophobia, Dysphoria, Transphobia, and Eating disorder

Minor: Death of parent, Vomit, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Infidelity