Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Mad Honey by Jennifer Finney Boylan, Jodi Picoult

92 reviews

ashleythomas's review against another edition

emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Death, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Self harm, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, and Homophobia

droznowski's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• 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? No

5.0

Wow was this book good! I love how the authors were able to keep me guessing the whole book. I was so conflicted about whether or not Asher did it even after the verdict. 
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The way the book revealed Lily being trans was done really well. I think that a lot of the points characters made around being trans were really beautiful. I really appreciated Jennifer’s authors note at the end. I too was saddened by Lily’s death just when she was finally getting to be herself and starting her life but that is the reality for so many trans women. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Abortion

pferdina's review against another edition

hopeful sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Olivia tells her story forward while Lily tells hers backwards in time. It was very interesting structure. I enjoyed the facts about bees. The story itself was compelling. Really good depiction of trans women, I thought. Also great depiction of all women’s issues. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Hate crime

Minor: Abortion

musicalpopcorn's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• 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

3.5

When her son’s girlfriend is found dead, Olivia becomes the mother of an accused murderer and she begins to question how she got to where she is.

This book was written in captivating language. It talked about difficult topics in a way that was easy to understand and not too preachy.

I did figure out the ending almost immediately though, which is why I’m not giving it four stars.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Toxic friendship, Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Outing, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Grief, Deadnaming, Sexual content, and Physical abuse

sariereads's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Violence, Death, Homophobia, Bullying, Child death, Outing, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Abortion, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, and Transphobia

jade_sanderson's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative sad slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Murder, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Child abuse

theverybookish's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Child death, and Murder

mamareadstuff's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

First 5 star read of the year. I couldn't put it down. I had so many theories. I didn't know what I was getting into. I loved this. So much. I did hope for a slightly different ending, but we can't win them all. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Outing, Self harm, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Grief, Death, and Child death

Moderate: Deadnaming, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Medical content

daniellereadslikealot_'s review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Nineteen Minutes is my absolute favorite Picoult novel and this one is a very, VERY close second. Mad Honey absolutely sweeps you away in its part contemporary family drama, part murder mystery and part young adult story. I am an absolute sucker for multiple POVs and a non linear timeline and this book did them both so well, giving us just enough to make us think we know the story, but then revealing something else to completely throw us off the scent. It’s hard to talk about this book without revealing spoilers for the midway through twist, but I thought the handling of that topic was done beautifully and in a really authentic way. I also loved the look at complicated relationships, even during the parts that were really sad to read. I thought both Olivia and Lily had strong voices and I liked the (maybe) symbolism of the literal (and figurative) masks they wore, Lily with her fencing and Olivia as a beekeeper. My only complaint was the ending felt a bit rushed. The final big reveal made perfect sense and it was honestly an option I was rooting for, but once revealed, it felt like everything just went back to normal. But overall, I loved this book. It’s brutal at times in many different ways and contexts, but I think it’s a very necessary read, especially these days.

Mini spoiler: nothing bad happens to the dog!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content, Mental illness, Child death, Transphobia, Abortion, Bullying, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Animal death

violetbentbackwards1036's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Self harm, Blood, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical content, Murder, Misogyny, Transphobia, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Abortion, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Deadnaming, Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Outing, and Violence