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Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton
1 review
lovelymisanthrope's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I buddy read this with a friend, and she adores this book. I was really excited to see why she loved it so much, but I, unfortunately, am still left wondering why anyone enjoys this novel.
This novel follows Ava Lavender, and the entirety of her family, as they try to live in their small town while they are also ostracized from their community. Ava was born with beautiful wings. She has been taunted, harassed, and entirely misunderstood her entire life. Ava just wants to be like all of the other girls, but on her quest for acceptance, she almost loses herself entirely.
I have researched, watched live shows, and had a thorough one-on-one discussion so I could try to articulate why I did not enjoy this book, but I am still left at a loss for words. I did read "The Astonishing Color of After" not too long before this, so maybe I just had my fill of magical realism? One of my biggest gripes with this story is that it is entitled "The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender", but we do not meet Ava Lavender until almost halfway through this book. The book tries to encompass the Lavender's entire family, and the story is told through an array of perspectives. I understand and appreciate that to understand Ava Lavender's story, we need to understand where she came from, but I ultimately felt like there were too many perspectives and not enough from Ava to warrant that she is the title of the book. I do not mind multiple points of view, but this book was overkill. Additionally, there is a very explicit rape scene in this book, but I did not see anyone mention this as a content warning. On a poetic level, I see what this scene brought to the story, but I do not think we needed such explicit and lengthy details about it.
Overall, this story was a letdown, but I would give Leslye Walton another chance in the future.
This novel follows Ava Lavender, and the entirety of her family, as they try to live in their small town while they are also ostracized from their community. Ava was born with beautiful wings. She has been taunted, harassed, and entirely misunderstood her entire life. Ava just wants to be like all of the other girls, but on her quest for acceptance, she almost loses herself entirely.
I have researched, watched live shows, and had a thorough one-on-one discussion so I could try to articulate why I did not enjoy this book, but I am still left at a loss for words. I did read "The Astonishing Color of After" not too long before this, so maybe I just had my fill of magical realism? One of my biggest gripes with this story is that it is entitled "The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender", but we do not meet Ava Lavender until almost halfway through this book. The book tries to encompass the Lavender's entire family, and the story is told through an array of perspectives. I understand and appreciate that to understand Ava Lavender's story, we need to understand where she came from, but I ultimately felt like there were too many perspectives and not enough from Ava to warrant that she is the title of the book. I do not mind multiple points of view, but this book was overkill. Additionally, there is a very explicit rape scene in this book, but I did not see anyone mention this as a content warning. On a poetic level, I see what this scene brought to the story, but I do not think we needed such explicit and lengthy details about it.
Overall, this story was a letdown, but I would give Leslye Walton another chance in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Torture, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Stalking
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