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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
3.5. i actually ended up liking this more than i expected. the last 30% was really good to me and maybe i’m just slow, but i finally started to understand and sympathize with rachel. i know the beginning 70% she was just a young girl trying to bridge the gap between childhood and adulthood, but a lot of her decisions were flawed. i find that her more serious decisions, no matter how right or wrong, made me more invested in her as a character. even the other side characters i found endearing, especially the initially misunderstood carey. james was … okay. i wasn’t drawn into his allure like rachel was. deenie was constantly on the short end of the stick but i liked how her story ended. big fu to dr. fred byrne
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Really liked this book! Became a bit dull in the middle.
emotional
reflective
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i guess the reviews are true...this book is messy(i think there must be a better word but i cant seem to find it) its messy like when you wash your hair before going to party and you come home at 6am still a little bit drunk and it wasnt even 12h since you washed it but it smells like alcohol and smoke and sweat, but this book feels also intimate, not just in the way the character are so deeply entangled with each other but because everything happens longing for someone. idk. i thought it was pretty good
emotional
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
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:
Complicated
medium-paced
emotional
funny
reflective
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage
Moderate: Sexual content, Abortion
Minor: Cancer, Sexual assault, Death of parent
emotional
funny
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
Instant favorite. A total bright spot in contemporary lit fic! So fun and fresh and flirty and also down-to-earth and relatable etc etc
I’ve been trying to pin down how I really feel about the book for a whole - and the truth is, I’m still somewhere unsure, in the middle. Fittingly, that’s exactly how the book itself felt: caught in between. It’s not quite funny, but not fully serious, either. It doesn’t clearly center on the protagonist, yet it’s not really about anyone else, either. Things happen, but somehow, it also feels like not much happens at all. Even the structure felt blurred - the beginning didn’t feel like the beginning, the middle didn’t feel like the middle, and the end didn’t feel like the end. It just felt like a continuous flow of moments that never quite settled into anything defined.
That said, the book has a genuine, unfiltered quality that I appreciated. It’s raw and real in a way that avoids the usual “romanticised” tropes. At times, though, it also felt like it was trying a little too hard to resonate with a younger audience - there was an almost performative relatability that didn’t always land. I think I would’ve connected with it more if I had read it during or just after university. Now, I found the characters frustrating as often as I found them endearing - but again, I kept swinging between the extremes.
Though it didn’t move me deeply, there’s something comforting in how it tackles familiar themes - friendship, love, identity, and all the complications that come with it. It doesn’t pretend to be unique or groundbreaking, and in that way, it leans into its relatability. It reads like a quiet confessional - those very human thoughts we often keep to ourselves, captured honestly on paper.
I wasn’t a fan of the writing style, but the steady undercurrent of drama kept me engaged. Overall, I would recommend it as a light, introspective read - something to fill the space between heavier books, especially for readers looking for a slice-of-life story with emotional nuance.
That said, the book has a genuine, unfiltered quality that I appreciated. It’s raw and real in a way that avoids the usual “romanticised” tropes. At times, though, it also felt like it was trying a little too hard to resonate with a younger audience - there was an almost performative relatability that didn’t always land. I think I would’ve connected with it more if I had read it during or just after university. Now, I found the characters frustrating as often as I found them endearing - but again, I kept swinging between the extremes.
Though it didn’t move me deeply, there’s something comforting in how it tackles familiar themes - friendship, love, identity, and all the complications that come with it. It doesn’t pretend to be unique or groundbreaking, and in that way, it leans into its relatability. It reads like a quiet confessional - those very human thoughts we often keep to ourselves, captured honestly on paper.
I wasn’t a fan of the writing style, but the steady undercurrent of drama kept me engaged. Overall, I would recommend it as a light, introspective read - something to fill the space between heavier books, especially for readers looking for a slice-of-life story with emotional nuance.
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No