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julebean53's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
nclausel25's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
noellegrace8's review
- 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
On that note, Sabrina is toxic and annoying. She does frustrating things or says mean/manipulative comments enough in the book that she actually didn't even seem like a good person to me.
Also, I was 70% in before I felt I wasn't confused anymore. I don't like the flipping back to the past thing, mostly because it makes it to where you don't understand the context of these 2 main characters' issues with one another and supposed reasons they can't be together. It did end up with a nice conclusion, but again, I'd rather have an enjoyable read for longer than have just an impactful ending.
I give Julia Whelan 5/5⭐️'s.
Graphic: Cursing and Alcohol
Moderate: Confinement, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
fanboyriot's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Chronic illness, Cursing, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Death, Infidelity, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
daniofthewood's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Cancer, Cursing, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Minor: Terminal illness, Vomit, and Medical content
neliadiedenise's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
jo_22's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
And the last 20%…oof <3 had great (albeit very rushed) character development, and relatable POVs/elements. (Career, life, love, boundaries, happiness, generational trauma, friendship, how to argue, secure attachment, growing up & adulting).
It was slightly triggering for me at some points which is reason for 4.25 stars instead of 5 stars.
Overall feelings are:
• omg this was enjoyable
• I want to talk to others about this book
• thanks han for pushing me to read it and putting me on EH
• the timeliness of me reading this is wild
• Harriet was frustrating in how she didn’t communicate or made assumptions / didn’t do relationships well. However I could relate at times so it didn’t bother me as much as other novels with this trope.
• I didn’t like Wyn in ways I liked other EH male romantic interests
• I like how much this focused on healthy relationships & friendships in particular way more than her other novels - it added a new dynamic & I enjoyed that variety. The characters didn’t often portray healthy relationships but I liked how EH explored that
• I NEED to own the paperback so I can reread and highlight impactful parts / quotes (There were so many moments where I paused the book to process or hype or reflect on)
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
3.5
"Love means constantly saying you're sorry, and then doing better."
There has been such a hype around Happy Place, and I honestly can't believe it has already got over 200.000! ratings on Goodreads. I mean, Happy Place has only been published for two months or so... Anyhow, I can't deny that I've been looking forward to read this one, because I really enjoyed my time with her previous books. I loved the sound of the blurb with the group of friends getting together and the Main cottage setting, and I had high hopes for it. Now that I've read it, I'm not sure if those expectations were actually met though... I'm not saying that it's a bad read and I initially did love my time with this story. There was something about this close group of friends that made me want to spend time with them. The main focus is on Wyn and Harriet of course, and they have the biggest character growth as a result, but I feel that the rest of them are still quite complex as well. I wish more time would have been spent in the present though, because the many flashbacks could get a bit tedious. The miscommunication trope ended up being a bit too much for me as well, because it was just too present not only in Wyn and Harriet, but in the group in general. It distracted from the other issues and only started to make me feel frustrated by the whole situation. Especially when it was not clear why they broke up in the first place and is was way too obvious they still love each other. That said, it was the last 20% or so of Happy Place that really let me down. Not only did I find this particular outcome to be highly unbelievable, but not satisfying at all either. I just couldn't believe that Harriet would make such a big decision on the fly, after only a week in Maine and without considering all her options. A slower build up would have made her decision a bit more credible, but still... This was NOT how I hoped this story would end. I can't deny that there were parts of the story that I loved, but Happy Place also ended up having more issues for me than expected.
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
kcarney86's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, and Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Classism
miggyfool's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness and Pregnancy