Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - Magnolia Parks

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Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings

88 reviews

heidi_fischer's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

⭐️2.5 - Beautiful writing. It’s actually not fair that such a toxic plot is written so poetically. I want to read the whole series just for that reason. That being said…

• Plot - TOXIC. Stomach churning, vomit worthy, toxic.

• Characters - Flat. Magnolia is off in delulu land, which is semi-justifiable due to the fact she’s dating a textbook narcissist. That, and maybe because all the braincells were CLEARLY saved for her little sister (arguably the only dimensional character - sorry Tom, still love you).

• Ending - predicted it 50% of the way thru

It’s not worth NOT recommending this book because even the readers who love it don’t recommend it to people. And while it’s more of a “read at your own risk” kind of book, if you watch reality TV you’ll probably survive.

Not unscathed. Not without renewed trust issues. But probably you’ll survive…

:)

Content Warnings

sjexley's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny lighthearted sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

This book. Addicting in the sickest way, like when you can't stop eating popcorn at the movies. Fucked up in the best way, like when you can't stop staring at a couple fighting in public. And wealth in the most opulent way, like when your Miu Miu mini dress costs $3500. If you are in a book slump, this will cure you. Think Gossip Girl, in London, on steroids. It is not high brow but that's what makes it so good. Brain candy for sure.

Content Warnings

boomwormbrittany's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Magnolia Parks follows Magnolia who has everything a girl could want. That is except her ex-boyfriend BJ who she has a strange but friendly relationship with. They're in a toxic circle that they can't seem to get out of despite their numerous attempts.
I'm going to be honest and say that I picked this book up on a whim. I wasn't sure if I was going to really like this book just based on the premise alone but I had heard so much about it that I wanted to give this a try.
Reader, I loved this book and all its messiness. And it. is. MESSY.
Magnolia and BJ are not good people or bad people and that was one of the things I loved about this book. These two are so fundamentally flawed that they felt like real people that you would meet out in the world. I loved how realistic these two felt despite them being so far out of my tax bracket they might as well be on the moon.
This book is about the toxic cycle that Magnolia and BJ end up in. They're in this constant push and pull relationship where they want to be together but the way BJ acts and Magnolia's not wanting to dela with it causes so much drama and chaos. The end of this book had my jaw on the floor and it was something I could not look away from.
If you want a book that is just pure drama and intrigue, pick this book up. I am so happy that I loved this book and cannot wait to continue with this series.

Content Warnings

chelseafrieske's review against another edition

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dark emotional relaxing tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

letterpress's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

How is the weather over there, Parks?

I am going to try and explain why this was a 5⭐️ read for me, because this relationship was one of mutual destruction and quite honestly I should hate it, but I don’t.

First off Jessa Hastings writing is absolutely amazing, the way she is able to describe feelings without straight saying them is so buttery smooth to my synapses.” Pine trees of mistakes so tall we can’t see over them and rivers of things we didn't say so wide we can’t get around.” I can hardly believe his is her debut novel, I am going to need to buy more tabs, because I don’t know if I can handle the rest of the series.

Our two main characters are Magnolia “Parks” and BJ Ballentine “Beej”. They have pretty much grown up together. Magnolia literally does not remember a time she did not know him. Throughout the whole story you watch them dance around the topic of why they are no longer together. They have created an amazing family of found friends from boarding school. At times when they did not have parents to count on they could count on each other. My absolute favorite relationship was between Magnolia and her sister Bridget (she is my fav). I loved the way they talked to each other so much. Bridget is pretty much our voice of reason in the book, she is constantly calling out Magnolia and BJ on their dysfunction.

Their relationship is absolutely something I would never want a friend/sister/brother to ever go through. They both use other people as objects when they get upset with each other. BJ sleeps around and Magnolia fake dates. However, I can understand how fear can make you go to a level you never thought you reach. Magnolia is so relatable, I can be the exact same way and say things are “fine” when they are so far from it not only does she lie to everyone in that sense, but she also lies to her self and creates this false narrative of how she really is doing. I hope that as I continue to read the series she is able to grow as a woman, find her self worth, and demand that from others.

This is the first book in a long time where I tabbed and spent time looking up merch. Of course I would love the not romance/romance book. There is just something about the depth of feelings that they have for each other, that is so believable, where they cannot face a reality that they don’t have each other in it.

I would totally recommend this to someone who has experience loss, not just in relationships. I think you would be able to relate to the feeling of not being able to let go. I cannot wait to move on to the next book.

Content Warnings