Take a photo of a barcode or cover
i had a problem with how cliche the characters were (ESPECIALLY quentin i did not like how they were portrayed whatsoever i would say it was borderline transphobic? borderline because i couldn’t grasp whether quentin was supposed to be trans coded or i don’t know it was all just very uncomfortable to read anything to do with quentin at all). there was far too much casual racism for some reason?? (realism? idk it was just odd). we had too many povs for most of them to just not matter or add anything to the story.
the whole thing mostly survives off vibes if i’m being totally honest.
and yet. i liked it and i cannot explain why. although the characters were unlikeable cliches i always wanted to know what was going to happen next. i think this is a very marmite book
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Alcohol
Moderate: Animal death, Self harm, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent
Minor: Drug abuse
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Alcohol
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent
And although to begin with, the overdone, witty quips from Frank and Cleo felt fake and tiring, their doomed relationship developed to the point that I felt quite emotional reading about how fiercely they loved each other, yet could not connect. Seeing them come to that realisation was moving, despite how pretentious their lives seemed in other ways.
I suppose I wish the author had written about characters that didn’t feel the need to name-drop and live high-flying lives. Why couldn’t Cleo have been working in a cafe or something rather than be an unemployed artist wife to a guy who built up his own ad agency? People this broken do not have such glitzy lives. And this book would have really been incredible if the characters had seemed more real. The author has a real talent with words. But she chose to write about such unrelatable, movie-like characters. I wonder why she made that decision.
Graphic: Self harm, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Eating disorder, Sexism, Death of parent
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Self harm, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol
Minor: Animal death
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Classism
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Toxic relationship, Blood
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Classism
Minor: Cultural appropriation
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Abandonment