Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

The Confidence of Wildflowers by Micalea Smeltzer

3 reviews

amgarrido's review against another edition

emotional sad fast-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? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Infidelity, and Grief

Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Child abuse, and Rape

Minor: Pregnancy

psyched_np's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely heartbreaking. Have the tissues ready. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death, Death of parent, Incest, Pedophilia, and Sexual content

khloereads86's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

I really didn’t feel anything from this book. Usually with a good romance book I catch myself smiling at their interactions or swooning over something the mmc says to her, but I never felt that here. It’s not even the age gap so much that I would have a problem with if I had felt like the characters actually really connected at all, but they didn’t seem to. The whole drama with Caleb seemed a bit ridiculous, and I don’t understand why she wouldn’t just break up with him instead of cheating. I thought it was ok enough for maybe 3 stars until the last 10% of the book, and now I’m not even sure I want to give it even this. 

What kind of book uses a child’s death so lightly? As a plot device to cause problems in the relationship?! I was honestly a little disgusted that this was where the author went with it. Then Thayer and Caleb fighting made me roll my eyes. That final plot twist of “oh look, I’m pregnant!” finally put the nail in the coffin.

It honestly just felt like the author threw as much drama and tragedy into the book as possible

• Abusive father who died of cancer
• Mother gets cancer
• Sister’s toxic relationship
• Cheating on Caleb
• Forrest’s death
• More Caleb vs Thayer drama
• Accidental pregnancy

and hoped it would work. I wish I dnf’d, and I definitely won’t be reading the sequel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Child death, Cursing, and Sexual content

Moderate: Rape, Cancer, Child abuse, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Death of parent, and Pregnancy