Reviews

solid writing and some interesting thematic work around activism and the idea of legacy, but the characters' relationships were not nearly fleshed out enough to give the book's themes any real heft.

l1brarygirl's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.0

bookofcinz's review against another edition

Go to review page

tense slow-paced

2.0

Underwhlelming

caseythereader's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

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

Thanks to Random House for the free copy of this book.

- Jen Silverman’s writing makes you feel as though you are reading a nonfiction narrative. Their characters and the world they inhabit feel so real and the prose flows so smoothly.
- This book is slower-paced than what I normally read, and still I couldn’t help but be drawn in to the dual narrative stories of Minnow in the present day and her father in 1968.
- Reading a book starring activists that is half set at the campus protests of 1968 is quite something right now. This book raises many questions we have seen repeated since then and right now - what style of action will make the most impact? Can you live with yourself if you don’t protest? How much are you willing to sacrifice for your cause?

Content Warnings

mrlzbth's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

bkbookend's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

There’s Going to be Trouble is a historical fiction with a dual timeline focused on two main characters - Minerva ‘Minnow’ (2018-19) and her father, Christopher ‘Keen’ (1968-69). The story follows these characters as they discover their own beliefs on activism, revolution, and love in both America and Paris.

The main characters were well-fleshed, smart, and independent thinkers. I loved the way the author is able to have the reader question their own beliefs and understandings of the world and political protesting through her inquisitive writing style. The author is a screenwriter and playwright as well, and it is evident in the way the novel flows. This was a big plus for the story, because it was cinematic in style and palpable, even with heavy topics of violence, war, and abortion. I could see this being an incredible movie one day!

I took my time with this, pondered and had conversations with friends and family thanks to this topical read, and ended up adding all of the authors published work to my TBR thanks to it. Thank you for writing and sharing this incredible work with me and allowing me to enter a world I would never had discovered otherwise!

nathansnook's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

Major thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts:

Who are your friends? What do they stand for? What do the6. Noose to believe in?How do they believe in it? Is there thought in action or action thought? Which comes first? Who comes first?

Told in dual time framework, you realize where protest belongs when compared to the individual vs collectivism. And with very real characters, you get a better sense of who you are and where you stand, especially in turbulent times like now. What is performative? What does it mean to be in the mean streets? Has violence changed? Or is how we see violence changed?

Silverman has created a timely text that though is hard to get along with at first, you end up thinking of the characters outside of the narrative and you watch the news and you think, what the hell am I supposed to be doing? For whose sake? And what about my own sake? And for which others?

Not one to be missed.

If you enjoyed this write-up, please consider purchasing my novella <a href="https://nathansnook.bigcartel.com/">here</a>.
Or find other thoughts on books and films <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@nathansnook/videos">here</a>.

More...