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agchalle's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I think the premise of this book has a lot of potential. A story about how addiction can shape a family is powerful, and the parts of the book that touch on that are good and moving. Emmy's family's stress and anxiety around Joey's addiction, the way they try to cope with death and pain, and Emmy's deep love for Joey feel very raw and real.
However, the rest of the book falls flat. The characterization of Emmy's high school experience is incredibly trite. Every character seems almost like a stereotype. Emmy hating the girl that has one interaction with her, maybe two lines of dialogue all together, because she is pretty and likes the same popular boy Emmy likes? Come on. The parts about shoplifting and The Portrait of a Lady seem to be out of place/not well used as compelling parts of characterization. I found the introduction to Emmy's former best friend to be clunky - all you know is Emmy's mother ended the friendship and the reader is left to wonder if the wealthy, strict, appearance-focused mother is also racist or if something else happened. You don't find out the truth until ~100 pages later, but the way it's left wide open does not do Emmy and her family any favors for sympathy.
A lot of potential, but several times throughout the book I thought things weren't necessary or wondering how much longer the book was going to go on. If Emmy's interactions with her siblings was kept, and 70% of the other material was cut/reworked, it wouldn't have been so flat.
However, the rest of the book falls flat. The characterization of Emmy's high school experience is incredibly trite. Every character seems almost like a stereotype. Emmy hating the girl that has one interaction with her, maybe two lines of dialogue all together, because she is pretty and likes the same popular boy Emmy likes? Come on. The parts about shoplifting and The Portrait of a Lady seem to be out of place/not well used as compelling parts of characterization. I found the introduction to Emmy's former best friend to be clunky - all you know is Emmy's mother ended the friendship and the reader is left to wonder if the wealthy, strict, appearance-focused mother is also racist or if something else happened. You don't find out the truth until ~100 pages later, but the way it's left wide open does not do Emmy and her family any favors for sympathy.
A lot of potential, but several times throughout the book I thought things weren't necessary or wondering how much longer the book was going to go on. If Emmy's interactions with her siblings was kept, and 70% of the other material was cut/reworked, it wouldn't have been so flat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, and Car accident
jmariereads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Car accident
Moderate: Bullying, Gore, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
miaaaahh's review against another edition
4.0
I found this book hard to get into at first. But once I got to know all the characters properly, I fell in love. Hearing the differing struggles of Emmy and Joey was so interesting. I found the first half of the book a bit slower but once I got into part two, everything picked up and, by the end, I was tearing up. I’ll definitely be reading Girl in Pieces sometime soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Car accident
Moderate: Sexual harassment
morgan001's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book. Even the author said in the note at the end this book was more challenging for her to write then her other books about SH( girl in pieces).
It’s very hopeful on the subject of joey getting the help he needs, does he get it? Or does it not work for him? Or will it work? U just don’t know. U won’t want to put the book down once u start reading.
I love this book. It really gets u and shows u the real struggle of OD and how it’s not jsut as easy to click ur fingers and ur magically back “normal” .
It shows. The true struggles people go through, the family’s go through, and it also makes u thing about how many people are like these characters. And going through this. And it makes ur feel sad to think about( or it did me) . :( 5/5
It’s very hopeful on the subject of joey getting the help he needs, does he get it? Or does it not work for him? Or will it work? U just don’t know. U won’t want to put the book down once u start reading.
I love this book. It really gets u and shows u the real struggle of OD and how it’s not jsut as easy to click ur fingers and ur magically back “normal” .
It shows. The true struggles people go through, the family’s go through, and it also makes u thing about how many people are like these characters. And going through this. And it makes ur feel sad to think about( or it did me) . :( 5/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, and Car accident
Moderate: Bullying and Cancer
pages_rewritten's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Grief, Car accident, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Suicide attempt
casutton's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Sexual content
kayleyayley's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-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
5.0
Yet another amazing book by Kathleen Glasgow. Real depictions of addiction and the effects on family and community, along with how addicts are treated and the stigma around mental illness. The reality of recovery and relapse. Realistic character flaws and development. I love Kathleen Glasgow.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
lindseyhall44's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
A thought provoking read on addiction and its affect on others, this novel is hard to forget.
“You’d be Home by Now,” follows Emory as her brother struggles with addiction and what it means to truly recover. It was an interesting choice to depict this struggle from the eyes of a loved one instead of the person dealing with addiction, but one I truly appreciated. From a different standpoint readers saw the impact of drugs on everyone around the user, shaping life as they know it.
The conversation surrounding this topic were handled well, and so were discussions on slut shaming and economic class.
There were some plot points which weren’t my favorite as well as social media and gen z comments which felt forced. It was hard for me to rate this unbiased, because How to Make Friends with the dark was such a staple in my own grieving process.
Overall, I would recommend (but please check trigger warnings before reading).
“You’d be Home by Now,” follows Emory as her brother struggles with addiction and what it means to truly recover. It was an interesting choice to depict this struggle from the eyes of a loved one instead of the person dealing with addiction, but one I truly appreciated. From a different standpoint readers saw the impact of drugs on everyone around the user, shaping life as they know it.
The conversation surrounding this topic were handled well, and so were discussions on slut shaming and economic class.
There were some plot points which weren’t my favorite as well as social media and gen z comments which felt forced. It was hard for me to rate this unbiased, because How to Make Friends with the dark was such a staple in my own grieving process.
Overall, I would recommend (but please check trigger warnings before reading).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, and Car accident
Moderate: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness
leesbookshelf's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
where to even begin with this book? it has seriously helped me to change my perspective on addiction. i’d never previously given much thought to the impacts of addiction on families and just how deeply it can root itself into people. i would definitely recommend this book to anybody (alongside a warning to check content warnings first).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Injury/Injury detail
sbbailey's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, and Misogyny