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daenerystargaryen's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Medical content, Physical abuse, Cursing, Excrement, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Sexual content
Minor: Dementia and Chronic illness
modestmargo's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
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: Child abuse, Mental illness, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Abandonment
Moderate: Drug abuse, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse
meb1202's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Abandonment, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Vomit
marissagero's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Child abuse, Abandonment, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Medical content, Vomit, Sexual content, and Gaslighting
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Car accident
emkschneider's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Child abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Grief
joeymd's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, and Mental illness
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Death of parent, Medical content, Vomit, and Car accident
kelseyfontaine's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
I absolutely LOVED this book! It did a great job at tying in a swooning romance and a realistic mental health/relationship struggle all in one. There was a good mix of traditional traditional “romantic” moments (nothing too cringy) combined with a very real edge where I could truly see Emma and Justin’s story playing out in real time. I appreciate a book that is rooted in human struggle, but can come out on the other side with a happy ending that doesn’t seem too stretched. I fell in love with all of the characters in this book, especially Emma, Justin, and Maddy. Justin was the epitome of a perfect male lead, and now I want one for myself 🤣. A great summer read that also made me appreciate the state of Minnesota. Highly recommend!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Mental illness, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, and Car accident
aurslde's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
4.75
just for the summer was such a pleasant surprise !! after finishing book lovers, i wasn't sure if anything would live up to that; however, this book lived up to that !! i would say this is the perfect book to follow up a emily henry novel. it's just as emotional and balanced with other plots that isn't solely romance focused. it had moments that made me laugh, swoon, annoyed, and emotional for each of the characters. i hate forced in third act conflicts, but this book made it sensical and earned. there are moments where it can get cheesy and insta-lovey but those are completely drowned out by everything good in this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Child abuse and Panic attacks/disorders
lindsaymck's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
What a finale! I found that the first 1/3 of the book was on the slower side, the middle picked up speed, and the end was a stellar climax. I honestly didn’t see the big reveal coming and appreciate the masterful tying together of all the stories. It was a 1AM blow-your-mind moment that had me unable to put the book down and then unable to sleep afterwards just thinking about it.
Emma and Justin might be soulmates, but the odds were stacked against them and the patience and understanding and effort it took for both of them to be ready to meet each other where they are was refreshing. “Right person, wrong time” and “if he wanted to, he would” come to mind! For them it was so easy being together, but it wasn’t easy to stay together and they both had to fight for it. I delighted in the fight they both put up to make it work, but the waiting and the growing that had to happen is what really resonated.
I also cherish the author’s Q&A after the book because it shines such a bright light on the metaphors/symbolism/themes at work. The island Emma and Maddy live on is a simple yet effective metaphor for the emotional island she became as a result of her PTSD and avoidant attachment style. The “well-loved” unicorn stuffie is a powerful symbol of how her childhood left her emotionally battered and in need of some serious TLC and Justin seemed to know that healing her past was the only way for her to truly move forward. (Justin using the unicorn pool floatie to cross the lake like a knight in shining armor to save her just adds a cherry on top of that symbol!) Finally, the roses; It’s pretty genius that they are both a callback to her mother’s family (the one she was cruelly hidden from) and a foreshadowing of the roots she hopes to put down by planting roses at Justin’s house.
Emma’s relationship with her mother/Amber was so toxic and definitely the most troubling of all the traumas Abby Jimenez has included in this series. Despite her past and how it conditioned her to detach and not allow herself to fully give or receive love, Emma was so wise about how to show empathy and put yourself in someone’s shoes instead of judging them. Justin was in serious need of this perspective-shift as his mom is imprisoned and he takes responsibility for raising his three siblings. (My ovaries pretty much exploded any time he was around them). The way she helps him come to terms with his mom’s choices and give his mom grace while not knowing how to come to terms with her own issues is so revealing about her character. She is so focused on helping everyone else, she never lets herself get the help SHE needs. It was so important that she did take her time to help herself before fighting for the love and the life she desires and deserves. The lessons she teaches could literally become its own pearls of wisdom or self/help book. I mean…
-“In a world where you can choose anger or empathy, always choose empathy.”
-“You are not what happened to you. You are what you do next.”
-“Not everything that comes out of crisis is bad. Sometimes your traumas are the reason you know how to help.”
-“Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little hard things that trickle into it that would have rolled off someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, that crack gets bigger, longer, deeper. It makes new breaks. You don’t know how broken she was or what she was trying to do to fill those cracks. Being broken is not an excuse for bad behavior, you still have to make good choices and do the right thing. But it can be the reason. And sometimes understanding the reason can be what helps you heal.”
Emma and Justin might be soulmates, but the odds were stacked against them and the patience and understanding and effort it took for both of them to be ready to meet each other where they are was refreshing. “Right person, wrong time” and “if he wanted to, he would” come to mind! For them it was so easy being together, but it wasn’t easy to stay together and they both had to fight for it. I delighted in the fight they both put up to make it work, but the waiting and the growing that had to happen is what really resonated.
I also cherish the author’s Q&A after the book because it shines such a bright light on the metaphors/symbolism/themes at work. The island Emma and Maddy live on is a simple yet effective metaphor for the emotional island she became as a result of her PTSD and avoidant attachment style. The “well-loved” unicorn stuffie is a powerful symbol of how her childhood left her emotionally battered and in need of some serious TLC and Justin seemed to know that healing her past was the only way for her to truly move forward. (Justin using the unicorn pool floatie to cross the lake like a knight in shining armor to save her just adds a cherry on top of that symbol!) Finally, the roses; It’s pretty genius that they are both a callback to her mother’s family (the one she was cruelly hidden from) and a foreshadowing of the roots she hopes to put down by planting roses at Justin’s house.
Emma’s relationship with her mother/Amber was so toxic and definitely the most troubling of all the traumas Abby Jimenez has included in this series. Despite her past and how it conditioned her to detach and not allow herself to fully give or receive love, Emma was so wise about how to show empathy and put yourself in someone’s shoes instead of judging them. Justin was in serious need of this perspective-shift as his mom is imprisoned and he takes responsibility for raising his three siblings. (My ovaries pretty much exploded any time he was around them). The way she helps him come to terms with his mom’s choices and give his mom grace while not knowing how to come to terms with her own issues is so revealing about her character. She is so focused on helping everyone else, she never lets herself get the help SHE needs. It was so important that she did take her time to help herself before fighting for the love and the life she desires and deserves. The lessons she teaches could literally become its own pearls of wisdom or self/help book. I mean…
-“In a world where you can choose anger or empathy, always choose empathy.”
-“You are not what happened to you. You are what you do next.”
-“Not everything that comes out of crisis is bad. Sometimes your traumas are the reason you know how to help.”
-“Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little hard things that trickle into it that would have rolled off someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, that crack gets bigger, longer, deeper. It makes new breaks. You don’t know how broken she was or what she was trying to do to fill those cracks. Being broken is not an excuse for bad behavior, you still have to make good choices and do the right thing. But it can be the reason. And sometimes understanding the reason can be what helps you heal.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
katieroth25's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow! What a rollercoaster! I loved it! It was complicated and real. The characters make so many difficult decisions that require sacrifice to do what is right for the people they love.
And a very realistic look at trauma responses and how healing is hard but possible if you find the resources and can do the work.
Much love to these characters I just want to give them all a big hug! 💜🦄
And a very realistic look at trauma responses and how healing is hard but possible if you find the resources and can do the work.
Much love to these characters I just want to give them all a big hug! 💜🦄
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Alcohol, Vomit, and Child abuse