Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Trouble Girls by Julia Lynn Rubin

2 reviews

giulsisnothere's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Tw: sexual harassment, abuse, terminal illness, homophobia, vomit, alcohol and weed consumption, mention of conversion camp, misogyny, teen pregnancy, murder

Trixie and Lux are excited to finally get out of their town for the weekend but a night of violence changes everything and the girls will have to try survive on their own. 

I LOVED this book! I could really feel the anxiety the two girls felt while they were escaping from the media and the cops. At times I had to put down the book and just breathe. 

Trixie was passionate, impulsive and hopelessly in love with her best friend Lux. At first I was rooting for them, but reading further I realized their relationship was quite toxic because they completely isolated themselves from the rest of the world and they wouldn't let anyone into their little bubble. 

I really loved the description of the places and I really felt like I was travelling alongside with Trixe and Lux. 

The book was fast-paced and a total page-turner and I ended up devouring it in less than three days.

I highly recommend it to fans of Courtney Summers and those looking for an intriguing YA thriller!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an early copy! 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

beyondstardust's review

Go to review page

dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This book was sapphic as hell and I am here for it. 3.5 stars.

Trouble Girls made me feel. And if you know me, you know that I'm dead inside, and potentially harboring a demon somewhere within my body that requires sustenance in the form of doughnuts every weekend. But this book made me feel.

First of all, the cover is gorgeous. That bisexual pink/blue/purple lighting, mMm. Yes. Second of all, I know that I haven't read a lot of books that are quite so brutal about murder and living on the run... following a murder.

Trouble Girls is a fun adventure of running away from consequences while discovering change, taking readers across the southern US as Trixie and Lux escape from their West Virginia origins. What starts off as a (moderately) innocent adventure to a bar on a college campus turns into a wild adventure of two teens on the run, trying to escape a fate that they're sure is going to befall them as a consequence of their actions. It's an exploration of having to grow up too fast, growing feelings, sexuality, and experimentation. It's been a while since I've read a book that felt a little gritty and dangerous, and this book was both of those things.

I enjoyed the feel of this book as a whole. The setting, the descriptions of the landscapes that they drove through, all coupled with the looming feeling of getting caught sets the stage for an intriguing novel, full of neon lights and blurred nights and set against the backdrop of sticky, sweet, sweltering heat. The constant danger encroaching on them as they race across the nation and gradually up the stakes -- set the stage with murder, then sprinkle in some other crimes as they make their way across the southern United States with a finite amount of cash and a car that could kick the bucket at any time.

I gave Trouble Girls three and a half stars because as much as I enjoyed the fast pace of the book, I found myself skimming a lot near the end. I would've loved a little bit past the actual end of the book, which I found to be abrupt and inconclusive, which is perhaps what the author was going for. But in light of this book focusing heavily around our two protagonists heading up a #MeToo movement, the conclusion of the book seemed to focus less on that and more on... well, anything else. I did love that this book took a movement and ran with it, but the ending left me a little empty. And remember, I'm already dead inside.

Cute book, though. Honestly, give me something with the bisexual lighting and murder girls and I'll read it. 

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
More...