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graciellai's review
4.0
"And if bringing up the past annoys you now — know that I'm sorry, but please don't be mad at me for reliving all of it. History is all you left me."
ciuli's review against another edition
5.0
I don't think I'll ever get over how beautiful this book is. I loved every single page and every single phrase and when I was close to the end, I didn't want to read it because I didn't want it to be over.
Let me start with saying that this is no walk-in-the-park book. I wasn't in a good place, mentally speaking, when I started reading this book. I was going through a rough time and reading this book wasn't really helpful as i was crying the whole time while reading it. That's the reason why I dropped it halfway and it took me over a month to finish it. So, what I'm trying to say is, this book is truly beautiful but when you start it, make sure that you can handle all those emotions that it's going to give you. That way you will be able to fully appreciate it.
Now let's talk about the book itself! Never a good idea to start reading a book that begins with a funeral! You certainly can't expect for it to be all roses and flowers. But even when dealing with a great loss and the grieving that comes in hand, Adam silver a still managed to make me laugh out loud or make me smile through some quirky responses. I love the diverseness of the characters, how every one of them was mourning in a different way and loving Theo in a different way. During the first part of the book we have Griffin talking about his story with Theo, and since it's from griffin's POV we get this idolized picture of Theo, who's the perfect boyfriend and friend and human being. But the more we go on, the more POVs we get to see, we realize that he wasn't so perfect after all but that's cool. That's more than cool because no one is perfect and I think these characters' imperfections are what makes them all the more real. Apart from Wade, Wade is perfect and he will always have a special place in my heart. But I don't want to talk too much about this because I risk spoiling something and I don't want to!
I loved the way Griffin's OCD was described and how this whole book help raising awareness towards this illness, because sometimes it ends up unnoticed by people. And the fact that it's okay to help people with OCD around things, like Griffin always being on the left, but how that is not all that helpful because at some point you're just accommodating them, but not helping them get better.
I loved this book. I can't seem to find enough words to describe this overwhelming feeling of love that I have inside and that I can't fully express. I can just say that it has definitely become one of my favorite books of all times and that I will always keep it with me in my heart.
Let me start with saying that this is no walk-in-the-park book. I wasn't in a good place, mentally speaking, when I started reading this book. I was going through a rough time and reading this book wasn't really helpful as i was crying the whole time while reading it. That's the reason why I dropped it halfway and it took me over a month to finish it. So, what I'm trying to say is, this book is truly beautiful but when you start it, make sure that you can handle all those emotions that it's going to give you. That way you will be able to fully appreciate it.
Now let's talk about the book itself! Never a good idea to start reading a book that begins with a funeral! You certainly can't expect for it to be all roses and flowers. But even when dealing with a great loss and the grieving that comes in hand, Adam silver a still managed to make me laugh out loud or make me smile through some quirky responses. I love the diverseness of the characters, how every one of them was mourning in a different way and loving Theo in a different way. During the first part of the book we have Griffin talking about his story with Theo, and since it's from griffin's POV we get this idolized picture of Theo, who's the perfect boyfriend and friend and human being. But the more we go on, the more POVs we get to see, we realize that he wasn't so perfect after all but that's cool. That's more than cool because no one is perfect and I think these characters' imperfections are what makes them all the more real. Apart from Wade, Wade is perfect and he will always have a special place in my heart. But I don't want to talk too much about this because I risk spoiling something and I don't want to!
I loved the way Griffin's OCD was described and how this whole book help raising awareness towards this illness, because sometimes it ends up unnoticed by people. And the fact that it's okay to help people with OCD around things, like Griffin always being on the left, but how that is not all that helpful because at some point you're just accommodating them, but not helping them get better.
I loved this book. I can't seem to find enough words to describe this overwhelming feeling of love that I have inside and that I can't fully express. I can just say that it has definitely become one of my favorite books of all times and that I will always keep it with me in my heart.
emma_janet_93's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
red_headed_book_slut's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
seyahrue's review against another edition
4.0
This would probably be a five star review if I could get over how much I disliked the writing style - I'm not a big fan of first person writing, and I know that the set up for this book does call for it in a way, but it still made me feel less attached to the characters somehow.
Saying that, I loved Griffin's character. He was really complex and even if the writing style did make him seem incredibly childish at times, he was still really complex and I thought his OCD was developed in a brilliantly believable way.
I'm honestly still surprised that I didn't cry at this, though. I cry at everything that's even the slightest bit sad. I'm kind of proud of myself, actually - i'm going to chalk it up to the first person writing, and the fact that it made it harder to connect with how Griffin was feeling. I know that should probably be the exact opposite, but never mind.
This is a really great book, with a brilliant and heartbreaking story - even if you don't like contemporaries, which I normally don't, it's a really quick read and beautiful read that I'd definitely recommend reading and I'm now looking forward to the release of Adam Silvera's next book!
Saying that, I loved Griffin's character. He was really complex and even if the writing style did make him seem incredibly childish at times, he was still really complex and I thought his OCD was developed in a brilliantly believable way.
I'm honestly still surprised that I didn't cry at this, though. I cry at everything that's even the slightest bit sad. I'm kind of proud of myself, actually - i'm going to chalk it up to the first person writing, and the fact that it made it harder to connect with how Griffin was feeling. I know that should probably be the exact opposite, but never mind.
This is a really great book, with a brilliant and heartbreaking story - even if you don't like contemporaries, which I normally don't, it's a really quick read and beautiful read that I'd definitely recommend reading and I'm now looking forward to the release of Adam Silvera's next book!
blurrypetals's review against another edition
5.0
That was quite the emotional gauntlet, eh?
Part of me wants to give this a 5/5 but the way things meandered up until Griffin left a little bit to be desired. I was really tempted, however, to just give it the perfect score anyway because of the beautifully brilliant way everything crashed together after and where each individual card fell, the ending filling my heart up in a way I wasn't expecting.
See, my prediction upon starting this book was that,. I'm really glad I was wrong, not only because it eliminated the predictability, but also because it left room for . Like I said, it just filled my heart up in a way I wasn't expecting.
If I had to compare this to something else, I would take the whole theme of falling in love with your best friend and getting through trauma by holding tightly to the people near you from The Perks of Being a Wallflower, all the absolutely cute and totally queer adorableness from Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, and the self-destructive teenager who's practically wearing a sign that reads I'M HURTING PLEASE HELP ME from Between Us and the Moon, which are all books I love very much, Perks and Beteween Us being two of my all time favorites, leading to me really enjoying this book. Sometimes it's really hard to live through a character's misery, especially when it's so absolute and encompassing as Griffin's grief is, so that's why this is a 4 and not a 5...but, who knows, maybe I'll ruminate long enough that it'll get bumped up with time.
edit, 3/9/18: I finally got far enough from the pain of this book to fully accept the beauty of it. Moved from a 4/5 to a 5/5 and added to my "best-books" shelf.
Part of me wants to give this a 5/5 but the way things meandered up until Griffin
Spoiler
goes to California with JacksonSpoiler
Griffin and Jackson sleep together, Griffin returns home, and we find out his history with WadeSee, my prediction upon starting this book was that,
Spoiler
after sharing all their stories about Theo with one another, Griffin and Jackson were going to end up togetherSpoiler
the reveal that Wade and Griffin were hooking up and that they were eventually endgameIf I had to compare this to something else, I would take the whole theme of falling in love with your best friend and getting through trauma by holding tightly to the people near you from The Perks of Being a Wallflower, all the absolutely cute and totally queer adorableness from Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, and the self-destructive teenager who's practically wearing a sign that reads I'M HURTING PLEASE HELP ME from Between Us and the Moon, which are all books I love very much, Perks and Beteween Us being two of my all time favorites, leading to me really enjoying this book. Sometimes it's really hard to live through a character's misery, especially when it's so absolute and encompassing as Griffin's grief is, so that's why this is a 4 and not a 5...but, who knows, maybe I'll ruminate long enough that it'll get bumped up with time.
edit, 3/9/18: I finally got far enough from the pain of this book to fully accept the beauty of it. Moved from a 4/5 to a 5/5 and added to my "best-books" shelf.
joeldrama's review against another edition
5.0
wow. devastatingly sad in a heart numbing way that hurts from the very start, but also an incredibly beautiful and important exploration of (queer) relationships
nerdy_german's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sammymus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75