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wormgirl'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
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Murder, Child death, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Suicide, Cancer, Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, and Homophobia
Minor: Abandonment
jamiebrito's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Car accident, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Cancer, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, and Infidelity
ppixxie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
And yet.
This book has everything that I disliked about House in the Cerulean Sea but turned up to eleven. The unearned character growth that Wallace goes through that seemingly comes from nowhere in Chapter 2 (I wanted to see him be shitty! I wanted to see him EARN his redemption and feel his horror at how bad of a boss he used to be.), how the nonwhite characters seem to only exist to further the white main character's emotional journey, and he never seems to build on the interesting concepts he introduces? He resolves them very quickly. I loved the idea of Cameron and I would've loved to see him more as some type of looming element throughout the book <spoilers>instead of coming in at the middle of the book, then getting his big resolution at the end. I'm also not a huge fan of how TJ Klune writes romances in general, he uses many of the same tropes for a lot of his couples so it ends up feeling more like a Hallmark movie rather than two individual characters falling in love.
I won't comment on how the book deals with grieving, the conversation about death, and how the narration deals with it. After I finished the book I read the acknowledgments where the author says that he used this book to channel his experiences. Everyone's journey with the death and grief of losing a loved one is different. However, why does it feel like the narrative punishes people who aren't immediately okay with their death? Or if they react in a way that is... not convenient to the characters at Charon's Crossing? it would've been cool to see how Hugo changed tactics to accommodate the different reactions that people had, but he kind of just sits with them and says "I can't even begin to imagine what you're going through" and sort of leaves it at that. (Which all the other characters repeat as well)
The part in this book that I truly, absolutely loved that hit me as incredibly real and grounded and sort of endeared me to Wallace and Hugo's relationship was at the end
Spoilers for the ending
I honestly think this is the longest review I've ever written for anything. Wow.
Graphic: Death and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Medical content, Animal death, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, and Racism
sooreads'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: Suicide, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Mental illness, Death of parent, Child death, and Murder
Minor: Car accident
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Racism, Violence, Cancer, Suicide, Child death, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Murder, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Terminal illness
Minor: Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Child abuse
autumnnovels's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Suicide, Car accident, Child death, Death of parent, Animal death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Cancer, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Terminal illness, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Animal death, and Child death
ewhite106'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: Death and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Car accident
emilysbookishlife'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: Suicide, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Car accident and Terminal illness
headachesince03'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? It's complicated
2.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Body horror, Cancer, Car accident, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Death, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Confinement, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Violence, Abandonment, Child death, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Murder, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual content and Homophobia