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whiskeywoman79's review against another edition
As a person who lives with depression and has lived parts and pieces of what I was reading the book was too hard for me. I highlighted multiple things in the 1st 24% so the book is beautifully written, the story was just too heavy for me to enjoy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Mental illness
jennaniho's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
If the song My Boo by Usher feat. Alicia Keys could be a book, it would be this one. It reminded me a lot of how Latine people also experience love, heartbreak, societal expectations and, more specifically, grief. Which is what this book focuses on and excels at.
Yasmen and Josiah, confront emotional repression, grief, and resilience, as well as the positive effects of therapy and mindfulness. Kennedy Ryan humanizes these characters to the point of making you identify them in people in your life. In Yasmen I saw my mother, my friends, while in Josiah I saw my father, my husband, and my uncle.
Is a truly inspiring story and a must read!
Yasmen and Josiah, confront emotional repression, grief, and resilience, as well as the positive effects of therapy and mindfulness. Kennedy Ryan humanizes these characters to the point of making you identify them in people in your life. In Yasmen I saw my mother, my friends, while in Josiah I saw my father, my husband, and my uncle.
Is a truly inspiring story and a must read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Moderate: Pregnancy, Addiction, Miscarriage, Chronic illness, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Abandonment
noodlesny's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Grief, Mental illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, and Injury/Injury detail
sandstonelibrary's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, and Mental illness
oxandco's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
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
5.0
The way that the author writes about depression is spot on. I knew exactly how she was feeling and it was just… you could feel every emotion jumping off the page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
dwinn5's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
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
4.5
I feel like i just got pushed down a flight of stairs… but in a good way? lol
Seriously, I should’ve known what I was getting into here, but somehow I wasn’t prepared with how much emotion this book was going to punch me in the face with. I’m genuinely not sure if I can ever read this book again, not because it isn’t good, but because I’m not sure I can personally handle it twice. It was such a heartbreaking story about two imperfect people in some very tough situations, and even when I wanted to scream at the pages, I felt so much empathy for both of them. I may not be a Colleen Hoover fan in the slightest, but she was not wrong with her little cover blurb. This was, in fact, real, raw, and magnificent.
All that being said, I will DEFINITELY be front of the line to read Soledad’s book when it comes out because our girl deserves a great love story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, and Death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
ebartsch85's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
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
4.5
I know this isn't shocking information, but Kennedy Ryan is a Goddess.
This book may be really difficult for people to read because of the traumas within the book, but gosh dang is it beautiful.
This book may be really difficult for people to read because of the traumas within the book, but gosh dang is it beautiful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Self harm, and Pregnancy
Minor: Death of parent and Dementia
sage_potter's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
5.0
I have to gush over this book, it’s one of my favorite reads so far this year and definitely a new favorite. The author handled the topics of grief, miscarriage, divorce, coparenting, and therapy so beautifully. The journey Josiah and Yasmen take individually with their mental health and how they encourage their children to as well was everything.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Child death, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Death
alliross2017's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Mental illness, Death, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Stillbirth, pregnancy loss due to traumatic eventspicycronereads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? Yes
5.0
WARNING: This book will definitely make you feel things! The narrative centers on Yasmen and Josiah, two years post-divorce as they try to navigate co-parenting and moving on with their lives. They are both still dealing with the trauma of the divorce and the circumstances that led to it (be sure to check content warnings!).
The weight of their grief is so heavy at times, I wasn’t sure I could continue reading. Now, if you are a well-adjusted person who has their head on straight, this probably won’t affect you. But I am going through some things, and so I found it a little harder to bear. I cried a lot while reading this. But I also laughed. And I swooned. And I squirmed in my seat. It unexpectedly had one of my favorite tropes, done with a twist. 💕🥵
Both MCs are smart and likable. They demonstrate strength in different ways. The family dynamics feel familiar yet unique to them. The secondary characters of Soledad and Hendrix are the most well developed - I suspect they will be the subject of subsequent books.
The spice in this one - it is a slow burn. But you burn right alongside them. 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
The MCs are affluent Black business owners, and the community that surrounds them in the Atlanta suburbs is quite diverse - lots of BIPOC characters, and a queer couple next door. I feel like Hendrix could be bi, but that may just be my wishful thinking. 😂 But even without that, there is a fair amount of racial diversity and some queer representation.
About 2/3 of the way into this book, I wasn’t sure I could give it a star rating. It’s so different from what I normally read. And it had my emotions in a chokehold, which made it hard to think about in terms of stars. But with the last third, the character transformations, and just all the feelings the story evoked, I decided it’s a five star read. Just keep your box of tissues nearby!
The weight of their grief is so heavy at times, I wasn’t sure I could continue reading. Now, if you are a well-adjusted person who has their head on straight, this probably won’t affect you. But I am going through some things, and so I found it a little harder to bear. I cried a lot while reading this. But I also laughed. And I swooned. And I squirmed in my seat. It unexpectedly had one of my favorite tropes, done with a twist. 💕🥵
Both MCs are smart and likable. They demonstrate strength in different ways. The family dynamics feel familiar yet unique to them. The secondary characters of Soledad and Hendrix are the most well developed - I suspect they will be the subject of subsequent books.
The spice in this one - it is a slow burn. But you burn right alongside them. 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
The MCs are affluent Black business owners, and the community that surrounds them in the Atlanta suburbs is quite diverse - lots of BIPOC characters, and a queer couple next door. I feel like Hendrix could be bi, but that may just be my wishful thinking. 😂 But even without that, there is a fair amount of racial diversity and some queer representation.
About 2/3 of the way into this book, I wasn’t sure I could give it a star rating. It’s so different from what I normally read. And it had my emotions in a chokehold, which made it hard to think about in terms of stars. But with the last third, the character transformations, and just all the feelings the story evoked, I decided it’s a five star read. Just keep your box of tissues nearby!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Child death, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Pregnancy
Minor: Car accident
Pregnancy loss; depression;