Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers

4 reviews

sebradley29's review

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4.0

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alittlebitheather's review

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challenging dark emotional 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

4.0

I've been meaning to read this one for a while - I knew I had been sleeping on it,  and boy was that proven right. While the cast isn't super diverse, it's still a compelling story about guilt, trauma, and losing one's self. It's exceptionally powerful for being one of Summers' early works (it's not always that an author gets stronger as time goes on, but she definitely has!) and is ultimately a story of redemption and coping with how certain events can change us. 
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ravensandlace's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Title: Cracked Up to Be
Author: Courtney Summers
Genre: YA Contemporary 
Format: owned paperback
Star Rating: 3.5 stars

tw: underage drinking, missing children, hospitalization, animal death, rape, death, attempted suicide, suicidal ideation, infidelity

I really thought I was going to like this book more than I did. But unfortunately, I just didn’t fall in love with this book. While I think it’s an incredibly important book, I just couldn’t bond with the main character. It’s probably because I couldn’t relate to what she was going through or who she was before everything happened.

I understand completely that Parker was a very broken individual, even before everything happened. I understand that her behavior is rooted in guilt for something she thinks is her fault. But I just had such a problem with the way Parker was to everyone. I don’t care how much you are hurting, there is no need to be so disrespectful. I am also not a fan of the trope that if something bad happens, even if it isn’t your fault, you must punish yourself. I just can’t stand that.

But despite my complaints about Parker, this book describes guilt and grief so well. I would even go so far as to say that the guilt Parker is feeling is borderline survivor’s guilt. Parker is a great example of how grief and guilt can completely change a person, to the point where they aren’t even recognizable to themselves or others. So even though I had complaints, I still enjoyed all other aspects of this book, including the complex relationship with guilt. 

Overall, I still recommend this book despite not falling in love with it. Courtney Summers certainly knows how to write hard-hitting books with characters you are either going to fall in love with or can’t stand. She also knows how to write books that touch on incredibly difficult topics that often aren’t discussed. And that’s why, even though I may not love all her books, I still highly recommend them. 
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fountain_of_book's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book had me confused for pretty much all of it. It was so worth it though. I highly recommend this if you loved Saddie. 
I wish/hope there is a story to what really happened to Jessie and even and update on how Parker did after therapy.



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