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4.57 AVERAGE
4.57 AVERAGE
The roller coaster of emotions from this book
This is the most beautiful, heart wrenching story I’ve read in a long time. A love story that tackles mental health, the bright and dark side of life and love. It is so beautifully written and so heartbreakingly on point to things that so many of us go through from all perspectives. I’m not a cryer of happy or sad tears and this book got both out of me.
This is the most beautiful, heart wrenching story I’ve read in a long time. A love story that tackles mental health, the bright and dark side of life and love. It is so beautifully written and so heartbreakingly on point to things that so many of us go through from all perspectives. I’m not a cryer of happy or sad tears and this book got both out of me.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
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:
Complicated
The roller coaster of emotions from this book... It's beautiful and haunting. And I wish we had a take-two in life.
This is the most beautiful, heart-wrenching story I’ve read in a long time. A love story that tackles mental health, the bright and dark side of life, and love. It is so beautifully written and so heartbreakingly on point to things that so many of us go through from all perspectives. I’m not a crier of happy or sad tears and this book got both out of me.
This is the most beautiful, heart-wrenching story I’ve read in a long time. A love story that tackles mental health, the bright and dark side of life, and love. It is so beautifully written and so heartbreakingly on point to things that so many of us go through from all perspectives. I’m not a crier of happy or sad tears and this book got both out of me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent
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
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death of parent, Toxic friendship
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
sad
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-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
REALNESS INDEX: 100%
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wow, just wow.
I didn’t understand at first why Jen Lyon started off with a prominent “author’s note” warning the reader that The Unfinished Line was “a love story, not a romance.”
Or why each chapter was unconventionally labeled as a “scene.”
Or why Kam’s scenes were written in the first person, while Dillon’s were in the third. As compared with Kam, the driven athlete remains opaque. Opaque to the reader, to her lover, and even to herself.
Until I did finally come to understand.
Scene 52, Take 1.
Lyon’s rendition of Dillon’s mental state as she sits at the foot of the lighthouse is nothing short of brilliant: It’s realistic, it’s heartbreaking, it’s masterfully written. It’s clear that Lyon embraced the maxim to write what you know.
But then, as I sat in a state of shock and awe, thinking I’d just finished a masterpiece….
She had to go and spoil it all.
WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wow, just wow.
I didn’t understand at first why Jen Lyon started off with a prominent “author’s note” warning the reader that The Unfinished Line was “a love story, not a romance.”
Or why each chapter was unconventionally labeled as a “scene.”
Or why Kam’s scenes were written in the first person, while Dillon’s were in the third. As compared with Kam, the driven athlete remains opaque. Opaque to the reader, to her lover, and even to herself.
Until I did finally come to understand.
Scene 52, Take 1.
Lyon’s rendition of Dillon’s mental state as she sits at the foot of the lighthouse is nothing short of brilliant: It’s realistic, it’s heartbreaking, it’s masterfully written. It’s clear that Lyon embraced the maxim to write what you know.
But then, as I sat in a state of shock and awe, thinking I’d just finished a masterpiece….
She had to go and spoil it all.
WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD
Spoiler
I’m sure Lyon thought long and hard before writing the alternate, fairy-tale ending. But it was a mistake. "Take 2" didn’t fit, and it diminished the power of “Take 1.” A leopard cannot change its spots. In her author’s note at the end of the book, Lyon explains that she wrote the alternate ending to “pave the way for ongoing conversation.” I'm not sure about that. I'm guessing that she felt conflicted. Like, maybe her readers would be upset if she ended with Take 1? Or, maybe she herself had become too attached to let Dillon go? I’m still giving the book 5 stars, but I wish she hadn’t felt the need to tack on a saccharine ending. It caused the Realness Index to come crashing to the ground.
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes