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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
It was a good quick read! The depiction of anxiety, ocd, and agoraphobia felt so raw and real and the author did a great job with the realism of it! The romance was also really cute!
Would definitely recommend if you’re wanting to read a not completely fluffy contemporary or a book with a good mental health rep!
Would definitely recommend if you’re wanting to read a not completely fluffy contemporary or a book with a good mental health rep!
I'm not lying when I tell you this book has made me lose control of time - I finished it in one go, approximately just 8 hours of nonstop reading. At 7:13 AM, all I could think about was how well-written this story was. It deals with prominent themes such as OCD, anxiety, agoraphobia, depression, and self-harm. I personally haven't known about agoraphobia up until now and by meeting Norah, I'm glad I get to understand her better. Not completely, but at least we're getting there.
I really loved Luke and Norah's connection but not as much as her relationship with her mother. However, I can't help but feel like the ending had come abruptly and we weren't given many details after. Overall, I'm completely blown away by the author, giving us authentic and unflinching truths, making a story set in a house so compelling, and teaching us that love does not cure mental illnesses but it does help. I'm keeping this close to my heart. A highly-recommended read.
I really loved Luke and Norah's connection but not as much as her relationship with her mother. However, I can't help but feel like the ending had come abruptly and we weren't given many details after. Overall, I'm completely blown away by the author, giving us authentic and unflinching truths, making a story set in a house so compelling, and teaching us that love does not cure mental illnesses but it does help. I'm keeping this close to my heart. A highly-recommended read.
Full review on my blog!
Representation; Agoraphobia, Anxiety/Depression and OCD. (#OwnVoices)
Trigger warning; Self-harm
Unlike other works, this wasn’t a « Love cures all » type of book; though love did helped her upon recovery, but she did it all herself. I adored Luke and just how sweet and thoughtful this guy was.
This story being written after Louise’s own thoughts and experiences made all so much more real, and of course had me tear up at her author’s note. I definately need more books like this one in my life!
Representation; Agoraphobia, Anxiety/Depression and OCD. (#OwnVoices)
Trigger warning; Self-harm
Unlike other works, this wasn’t a « Love cures all » type of book; though love did helped her upon recovery, but she did it all herself. I adored Luke and just how sweet and thoughtful this guy was.
This story being written after Louise’s own thoughts and experiences made all so much more real, and of course had me tear up at her author’s note. I definately need more books like this one in my life!
(3.75) loved 90% of this book but the last 20 pages took such an unexpected and unnecessary twist. we all need mom’s ljke norah’s
dark
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A very good portrayal of mental health disorders.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Real rating: 3.5★
I was thinking of giving this book 4★ (what a shocker for me this year), but since I've been giving 4★ ratings like there's no tomorrow since 2018 started, I had to admit that this book made a slightly worse (I cannot think of a better word at the moment, it's 2 am and I'm tired, sorry) impression on me then the other ones did.
It's not a bad book, by all means, I think it's pretty entertaining and though at the same time, it's just not the best thing I've read so far this year. And I've decided to lower my ratings a bit after all, and not to rate the book I've just read 5★ (or even 4★) if I know I'm going to lower it after some time passes and I'm not hyped anymore.
Likes:
~ The representation. We have the main character that suffers from agoraphobia, OCD, anxiety, and depression. I cannot speak for most of the rep here, but it is an own-voices novel and it felt genuine and pretty accurate.
~ I liked Norah. Although she suffers every day more than I could ever imagine, I found her quite relatable. She is funny and snarky but at the same time, she is trying to take control over her life and to understand her mind. I LOVED her relationship with her Mom (and I liked her Mom, too). Also, she was the only character that suffers from some kind of mental illness I've read about in a while that likes her therapist and says she's smart and knows what she's doing. She feels safe around her, and although she gets panic attacks whenever she has to leave her house to go to therapy, she does it.
~ I think that the representation of therapy is really helpful in this book, even more so because in most other books about mental illness it either isn't mentioned as an option, or it is represented as some kind of devil institution.
~
“See, anxiety doesn’t just stop. You can have nice moments, minutes where it shrinks, but it doesn’t leave. It lurks in the background like a shadow, like that important assignment you have to do but keep putting off or the dull ache that follows a three-day migraine. The best you can hope for is to contain it, make it as small as possible so it stops being intrusive. Am I coping? Yes, but it’s taking a monumental amount of effort to keep the dynamite inside my stomach from exploding.”
Dislikes:
~ The writing style was average at best. I don't mind over-the-top descriptions in books, but they felt a bit forced in this one.
~ The romance. I know that she must have been taken away by the fact that some boy wants to talk to her and hang out with her, but it was too much at the beginning. Again, after the last one I've read, I'm going back to not liking insta-love in books. I must admit, we get their relationship developed during the course of the book, but it threw me off when it started by all the 'his smile can brighten up the whole world' I've encountered here.
~ The ending felt rushed. The book was slow and character-focused the whole time (I mean, we have an agoraphobic main character, after all, so all she does is hang around her house), and then all of the sudden things happen, a month passes by, we get an epilogue and the book is over.
All in all, I think that this was an ok read, and I would recommend it to someone who deals with this kind of things or wants to learn more and understand what people suffering from mental illnesses are going through.
I was thinking of giving this book 4★ (what a shocker for me this year), but since I've been giving 4★ ratings like there's no tomorrow since 2018 started, I had to admit that this book made a slightly worse (I cannot think of a better word at the moment, it's 2 am and I'm tired, sorry) impression on me then the other ones did.
It's not a bad book, by all means, I think it's pretty entertaining and though at the same time, it's just not the best thing I've read so far this year. And I've decided to lower my ratings a bit after all, and not to rate the book I've just read 5★ (or even 4★) if I know I'm going to lower it after some time passes and I'm not hyped anymore.
“Sometimes things are going to happen and the only way out is through.”
Likes:
~ The representation. We have the main character that suffers from agoraphobia, OCD, anxiety, and depression. I cannot speak for most of the rep here, but it is an own-voices novel and it felt genuine and pretty accurate.
~ I liked Norah. Although she suffers every day more than I could ever imagine, I found her quite relatable. She is funny and snarky but at the same time, she is trying to take control over her life and to understand her mind. I LOVED her relationship with her Mom (and I liked her Mom, too). Also, she was the only character that suffers from some kind of mental illness I've read about in a while that likes her therapist and says she's smart and knows what she's doing. She feels safe around her, and although she gets panic attacks whenever she has to leave her house to go to therapy, she does it.
~ I think that the representation of therapy is really helpful in this book, even more so because in most other books about mental illness it either isn't mentioned as an option, or it is represented as some kind of devil institution.
~
Spoiler
I loved that the self-harm thing was not just mentioned and never talked about again. I think that the way she wrapped that up was quite nice. And I loved that she mentioned the small things we do that count as self-harm, too. When you say self-harm, most of the people think about cutting or something more drastic, and the smaller things get glanced over.Dislikes:
~ The writing style was average at best. I don't mind over-the-top descriptions in books, but they felt a bit forced in this one.
~ The romance. I know that she must have been taken away by the fact that some boy wants to talk to her and hang out with her, but it was too much at the beginning. Again, after the last one I've read, I'm going back to not liking insta-love in books. I must admit, we get their relationship developed during the course of the book, but it threw me off when it started by all the 'his smile can brighten up the whole world' I've encountered here.
~ The ending felt rushed. The book was slow and character-focused the whole time (I mean, we have an agoraphobic main character, after all, so all she does is hang around her house), and then all of the sudden things happen, a month passes by, we get an epilogue and the book is over.
All in all, I think that this was an ok read, and I would recommend it to someone who deals with this kind of things or wants to learn more and understand what people suffering from mental illnesses are going through.
I like this book.
Usually it's hard for me to get into books/ story with first person POV. But this book just pull me in and I don't even realize it's in first person pov until I am about a hundred pages in. This story is about Norah who has agoraphobia, OCD, and anxiety. And I think I can understand what she's been through. And I know, I don't experience it as hard as her but I understand her struggles and it's kind of a relief reading something about things that I struggle with. And even if you don't have mental health issues I think this book can help you understand even just a little about it.
The think that I don't like about this book is only I feel like the ending and the romance is a bit too rushed. I still have a lot of questions about how Norah coming back home, about how her relationship with Luke starting again, about what did Luke did/ think in those four weeks after the kissing. Also I really want to see how Norah does after everything. Can she travelling to France? Can she does everything in her list? And I think I want to see how she manage in this world with her struggle.
Usually it's hard for me to get into books/ story with first person POV. But this book just pull me in and I don't even realize it's in first person pov until I am about a hundred pages in. This story is about Norah who has agoraphobia, OCD, and anxiety. And I think I can understand what she's been through. And I know, I don't experience it as hard as her but I understand her struggles and it's kind of a relief reading something about things that I struggle with. And even if you don't have mental health issues I think this book can help you understand even just a little about it.
The think that I don't like about this book is only I feel like the ending and the romance is a bit too rushed. I still have a lot of questions about how Norah coming back home, about how her relationship with Luke starting again, about what did Luke did/ think in those four weeks after the kissing. Also I really want to see how Norah does after everything. Can she travelling to France? Can she does everything in her list? And I think I want to see how she manage in this world with her struggle.
I did like it but not for the romance aspect of it. Basically, she's agoraphobic and has OCD. A dude moves in next door and they like each other. He does try to understand that there are many things her illness doesn't allow her to do, but he pushes her boundaries on multiple occasions. She doesn't like people touching her because of germs but he does without permission multiple times. He does end up reading some books abt it but still no. Other than that I really liked it because of the mental health rep and how it portrayed OCD, anxiety, and agoraphobia.
It was a privilege to sneak a peek in Norah's life, and I loved that there was no miracle cure in the end. This is a very important book, probably one of the only romance stories I actually enjoyed.